Burmese I11vasions of Siam, Translated from the Hmannan Yazawin DawgyL

...T . Preface. 'l' he materials for the subject of this paper ·were ch awn almost entirely from the Hmn.nn a 11 Yazawin Dclwg·yi, a H istory of Burm a. in Burmese co1npil eLl by order of King Dagyict

The nn t.ive work lms be en closely ac1l1erec1 to in tl1i · pnper, so nmch so that it may he co nsidered a free translat ion ( lr the original coveri 11g t he ~_J e r i o d treated of. A resume of the whole of '\vhat i · containea h re IYill lJe found in Sir A. rtlnu Phayre's llislory of Bul'lna . J n hi s l1 ist ory Sir Art hur Phayre has

Ro as not to umkc the subject of this paper appear isola ted, it is dee u1 ed proper to give a sltOrt introduction on tlte slate of affairs in Burma for a period of cLuo ut 30 years pi·ccec1ing tho elate on which tho subject t1·eatecl of hero opened; in fact com mencing 1Yith the uirth of t he first invader of Si am, describin g in bare outline his career, ::m el leading up to th.e invasion itself. [ 2 ] Introduction. The political condition of Burma in the old days before the l'ise of the last dynasty was much the sa.me as that of Siam about -the same period. The whole country was divided into small prin­ ·cipalities, at one t im e independent and pros perous, and even holcling neighbouring states in subjection, while at auotbe1·, overthrown, dependent , or subject to a more powerfulneighbou1·. As in Siam in those clays there was no recognized rule of succession, and on the ·demise of a king or a cl1ief, whoevet· of the kith and kin of · the -deceased could intrigue most and gather ::1, large number of adherents secured the succession. Therefore, t he overthrow of a powerful or suzerain state wa.s brought about quite as much, if not more, by this internal struggle for succession as by t he rise in power of a neighbour wl1ich had enjoyed a shor t term of rest, an(l been able to recoup its exhausted energy. Though the whole country w::ts honeycombed wi th " towns " each under a governor, a chief, or a. ruler who in some cases, de­ pending on territorial extent tlS well as in powet·, was dignifiekingdom of Ava under a Burmese king, that of H anth ~twacl dJ uncl et· a Mon or Ta.laing King, that of Dinn yaw~L d dy ot· Amkan under an Aral1 anese King, and tl10se of Toungoo and Prome. 'l'he last t wo bein g situated almost mi.d wn.y between t 11·o powel'fnl rival kingdoms, t he Burmese at Ava, a nd t he 1\fon a.t I-Lmthawaddy, enjoyed an unenviable position of having to subrnit to frequent political changes ; now u nch~ r a Vi ceroy who wa.s sometimes raised t o the dignity of h i. butal'J King, appointed fr·om Ava, and a lit tl e while after, under another from Hanthawacldy; occasiona.lly as s(~ r t i ng their independen ce when the two rin tl kingdoms hrd exhausted t heir · powet· by mutua,! struggle fo r· supremacy or by internecine strife for succession to the throne. About thirty years before the "fi rst inva.s ion o£ SiNadaw 2 892 · ( A. D. l ~'HO . ) ; thus he W

I n the year fJ0 -1- (.\. D. J.) L~. ), P rome fell t o him after a pt·o­ t rn.ctecl siege, tlte King of Prome sm renrleriu g, only asking t hat he and his relatives might be spn,red.

I n the year 008 ( r\.. D 1-1 f.U . ), t he K ing of .A.r,tkan having Ll ied, his so n succeeL1ec1 to the throne, but the successio n was

J. May. 2. December. [ 4 contested ·by the de cf~ase rl King's brother who was governor of Sancloway. H e sought t he assistance of Minta ra Shweti who was. only too willing t o render it, and who accordingly marched an nxmy to Ara1mn. After laying siege to t he capital for some time an · agreement was come t o by which the new King of Aralmu was to cede Sandowa.y and certain otl1e1· tenitory to his uncle who was t o be recognised as king independent of Arakw , and both to be nominally subject to Mintm Shweti. Thus Mintara Shweti 1vas actua.lly King of T oungoo, l'rome,. and the whole of the 1\'Ion co unt r_v, anll the nominal suzerain of Aralmn and Sa,ndowa.Y when the em of his warlike relations with Siam openecl.

- )o( -

'fals:ing acl viw btge of l\'Iintarn, Shweti's absence in Am.lmn, t-he King of Siam sent Tluunein Krmbut·i atll1 'I'ha.mein Drnvtakrt with 200 eleplmnt;;, 1,000 horse, aud GO,OOO men to ca.pture Tavoy. On the arrival of t he Siamese troops, t he Goveroor showed onJy a shadow of resistance and then tied to Ye. N ews of the capture having been bl'ougl1t to the ca.pitd, Mintara Shweti sent 40,0v0 men b,y watet' with a :flotilla of 100 b ig anc1 300 small r;a iJi ng vessels, and 200 elephants, 2,000 horse and 80,000 men by land to expel the Sia mese from 'l'avo_y and beyond the f rontier. The expedition was quite successful , the Burmese following the Siau10se forces well into Siice1·oys a.nc1 governors to come for ward with their contingent of elephants, horse and men. The governors of the to\>·ns to the east of the capibl lying on the line of march were ordered to get stores am1 pi·ovisions ready. Then on the 13th waxing Tazaungmun 3 010 (1!J,J,8 A. D . )) Mintam Shweti beO'an his march from HanthawaclJy. The vanguard division b consisted of 4 regiments o£ ho1·se each 2,000 strong and 8 regiments of infantry composed of 1>,000 men, each under their respective .provincial governors; ancl also a corps of 200 elephants distributed

3. Novembe1·. [) J among the infanhy. The principal comtuanders 111 this eli vision were, Mintm·a Sh weti 's brother-in-law rts well as chief adviser called Ba;yiu Naung 4 who was governor of Hlaing, ancl the governors of J\'lartn.ban, Sittaung and Ye.

The central division 111 which Miutara ~ lSlnveli himself: nHnchecl consisted of 80 ele]Jha.nts, 800 horse aud "10,000 men under the comlltancl of Yaz

A.t Marhtban :t bridge of boats was constructed from 1\'Ltrta.bn.n to Mottlmein and the whole army of horse ancl .meu erossetl over it. The eleplmnts were bken higher up the ri1rer \\'h ere it was nano·.,v and fon1

From i\i oulmein ut<'lr clt was made to 'l\mngpaLvu the B urm ese f rontier towu, and theuce to Krtn bmi, a nt1 thence ag:un in the directio 11 of Yodaya. ( Ayuthia ). Alllusemc·JJts and ent er­ i:a.inments were li eld a.t every encampment 0 11 i lte W

The King of Siam lwn. riug r,f the invasion, was not slow in gettiug an army ready and came out to meet the inraclet· on the way. News of the ll1

The three divisions were spread out, the King of Prome was l1l tl1e centre with l 00 elephant.s, 1,000 lt orse and 50,000 men ; Bn.y in Naung with a like force was on tl1e left; and the rest of the a rmy with Mintam Slmeti on the rigltt. The left diYision was rclereu t o lie in ambush in t he forest wl1ile the camlt T of the centrn1 division was ordered to a.clvn,ll ce. The Siamese army seeing the cavalry of the eJ telll.)' advance chnrgoll i ·ith their olopha.uts. The cavalry pretetlllec1 a reheat so as to eni.ice tlte defenders to

4. Lit: elder brother of l;ho Kin er . '\'V e Rha ll hear more of this Uayin N aung in the subsequent papers fur it wus he who successfnlly <>verran almost the whole of central and northern Siam. r n J

follow up a.nd fall into a snare. The plan succeeded entirely, and t he whole of t hose who were too ea.ger in their pursuit fell into the hands of Dayin Naun g who closed in from the left. The main S iamese arm.y ca.me up to the rescue, but by t ha,t time t he right wing with Mi ntant Shweti ltlso came up, and in t he battle which €nsuecl tl1e Siamese army was defe[tted ttnd forced to rei;rea.t. A mong t hose capt ured wei'e the son and t he brother of the K ing of Siam, n,ncl t he forces surrounded and caught in t he ambuscade. T he King himself made a hasty retreat withdr,twing all his ar my for the defence of t he ca,p ital AyuthiYa ter, [Wd :Ll so to the strong fl efence made, in which t he artillery set·v ecl by Ka.la Panthays (fo reignet·s) piayed an imporblnt p :L J' t in keeping the inva,ders off at :L safe dist:w ce.

After inves ting tl1e city fo r about a month without fl. ny appreciable effect on the defenders, JYli ntam Shweti called a. council [tnd proposed tlw.t t he ontlyin g ])J'Oviuces of K a. manpai k, 5 Thaukkate, 6 and Peikthaln.uk 7 should be fi r .~t captured; this wa s a.pprovecl of by Ba.yin N rn lll g and otl1ers, ancl the fc,llowing morniug­ the forces were withdrawn a.nd aclva,n cc \Vas made in the direction of Kamanpaik.

'l'he King of Siam on ]e,L ming of the retreat arra.nged t o foll ow up the enemy ia three differell t routes :-one force under the co nunanll of his brother 0 ya. Pei kthalan k a nd A nkbya. Setki, anoth er under the co mma.ntl of. lJis so u-in-law Oya Lagun E inmct and Oya llam, ancl a, third um1 er hi s own commaucl . ..

\ Vithin three marvl1 es frn m .Ka m:t nprtik l\1in tara Slnveti became awa,re of the pursni t, nn\1 he immocl ia.tely ordered a halt and c1 isposo u of his army to meet the p m·s uers. T he triple el i vi sional for mation was again orcl e!'ecl; Hayin Nanug and fo m others were pln.ced in the ce ntre, t he g·overn or of i'rrart::than a nd fom· others on th e right, and the governor of Sittanng rwcl four others on the left. A geueral march of t he three divi sions was ordered to meet the

5. Karuphengphet. 6. Sukhothrti. 7. P hisnul 6k. r ~ J ptu suers on the wa.y, while Minta,ra, Slnveti himself bt·ought up the rem·. He was mounted on h is richly ca,p:trison ecl. elepha.nt aucl immediately surrounding and gun,nling him were variom descrip­ tions of armeclmen ::tmong whom mention i;; ma.cle of the pt·esence of ~00 Kala ( foreignet·s ) foot lancet·,;; 11nd 300 Kala Panthay ( for eignm·s) musketeers. \Yith h im wet·e the tl'ibubtt·y K i.ngs of Tonngoo and Pl'ome on t he left :wcl the r igh t re;;pec tively, a nd the governor of lhssein in t.he re::tr.

Afte t· m::trchillg :Lbout t,wo mi.le.:; , JYiint

'While the three divisions were resting near a lake, a, re­ {;onnoitring party of :300 horse wn.s sent out ancl it crtme in contact with the advan cE: hor;:;e o£ the Si:Lm ese. After fL skirmish the re­ connoitring part_y retre[Lted :LIId infol' me•J. t !J e ll1 ct in Ll ivisions of the ::Lpproach of the Siamese. 0l'ders wore issue(l to be prepared fo1· t h e attack.

'l'he Sirtlllese -ar ttJ y ab o clll v;w ced i11 t hree Llivi sionfl, and this f orm of battle ordel' appen.rs to lJe Lh e w os~ frL \'O lll'ed one in those cbys. On t he approach of t !J e S ia . lll e~e tlt e Burmese right undel." t l1 e g-o ve rnor of Martaba. n a nd fom othet· loac1 ers advanced an•l carne in contact with t he Sia mese left unr.ler Oya Peikthalauk, Auk-te.-Ha JJ and Oyn, The1m a. 'I he llmmese left nncler the governoJ." of Sittaung and fo ur o tl.JJ3rs al so adva uce(l ancl eng<1ged in conflict with the Sin.w ese right uncl c~r Aul,hya Setki, O_yn, Tizi and Oya Rn.1n. B

Special notice is made of the braver.)' cl ispla.J'ecl by Ba}'in Naung's son Zeya Thi.ha,, then on l.Y ~t bo.r uf Vl, \Tho fought by the si.de of his father. Under the name of l\Ia,h[L U paynza, he playes a fairly important part when his father invaded Siam, bnt he wa,cl far behind his father in ability. r 9 J ·when Mintara t\hweti, wlw was some distance l1ebind, hea.l'd the report of guns, he lmew that fighting had commenced, and so ca.me up with all speed. He arrived on the scene of b:tttle towards the afternoon but did not take pa.rt in the fight, fm· even at that lJCmr, it was plain that th succes of the day would be his.

Notwithstanding t hat his arll1j' had secureLl lL complete vi c' ory, he wa::; still greatly displeased at the way his onl.:J r was oisobeye<1. \Vheu all the genemls preseut.erl themselves before him in the conrse of the evPn ing, and egold, silver, wearing apparel and fo od stuffs were made over to the persons who cttpturecl or obtained them. },rom this mode of disposal of the loot, one cttn imagine what ::~mount of looting and plunder there would be in the Burmese army of those days. When each had been rewarded as he cleservell Mintara Shweti consulted his generals as to the next step to be taken. On e of them Uaha-Gyi by name suggested that they should march on to the capital, saying tlmt the t Shan states , :t nd then invade S i ~ m again with the aux: ili(tries obtained. ft·om t he conqueretl kin gdoms and stfLtes. A third suggestion was put forwctnl b_y one Nan clFL 'l'hingyan. He said t he Siamese had already suffereJ. tw•:} defeats with heavy losses, and t he son, the bt·other, and the son-in­ law of t heir Spvereign wm·e held as priso ners. I n the circum­ stances he believed tlut t he Siamese King would sue fo r peace ; even if he did not, there W HS tim e enough for f urther operations which might be rlirecte.l aga.inst Kama,npaik, 'rln ukkn,te aml P eikthalauk. The taking of these towns, he said, wo uld present n ) diffi cult)'. Then cl ming t lt e rains, part of t he ar my not requi l'ed t o:} hold the t ow ns woul J lJe empl oyed in cultivatin g t he WlTOttnding land, a nd anothe t· par ty stationed at K ~Lman p aik to bn iicl a flo tilla. of boats for the tt·ansport of. the gt'itin and other prov isions gfttheretl during the recess in tl1e rains. \ \'hen t hus f ully pl'Ovidec1 , to maim another attempt at retl ucin g· the C

Accordingly the whole Bnt·mese (Ll' lll.)' LWLI'Ched t o K

\ 'V hile preparat ions we t· e hein g made for the m

Tha,nkkate, a written messn.ge f rom Hi :; Majes ty Byathadi Yaza Y King of Sia,m, ~trrivecl togethet· with presents of gt·een a,ncl reel woollen cloths, panungs (lit: single bre::tdth " p::tso " or Bmmese [ ]J J loin cloth) rell a,nd white piece.· oE foreign cloth n,ncl sweet smelling woods. The mess<1ge was to the effect tlw.t on co ndition of his son, brother aml son-in-la.w being relen.secl l1 e would take the oath of allegiance and pay yearly 30 war elep!J ants, :.JOO ticals of silver, a.ncl the customs reven ue 8 of 'fenasscrim, If t he conditions were accepted, two white elepltants He M to ta,ke the oath of allegiTagu 10 ~llO (.A. D. F>48. ), the expedition lasting nearly Ji ve months.

Thus ended the first orgct. ni;-; cll in vnsioll of Ri

8. Lit : tax on shipping. 9. Swankhaluk. l 0. April. [ ] ~ J

SIH AHTHUR PHAYHE'S AC'COUKT OF THlD SAME rNVASJON .

lsion of Provoked by the at t11ck from t he Kiug of Siam, Tabeng ~ i tl m• Sh weti determined t o in vade that co untry. H is preparations were­ on a great scale, aud occupied hitn l1uring tho g r e~te r prtr t of the o, 1548. year. Near the close of t he yertt', when the coun t ry is dry after the rainy se:1son, the whole army W< LS rLssembler1 at M ~Lr taba . 11. 1 The arrangements fo t· t he c;uupaign were, a.s on all p revious occa­ sions, uuc1er the orders of Bnriug Xn.ung. A s mall body of Port ngese. proba1ly employed only as g unuers, formed a part of t he army. '.rhey were comrnaudecl by J [L!lJes Soarez, who after wards rose t o high office. The army cros::;ed the Sall'" een ri1·er , and marcltiug iu an easterly direction, reached tho Menam ri1·er in its upper course. F rom thence it marched clown t he river-banks in tlm~ e columns. ·w hen nearing Y ntl1ia or Yoda.ya, tbe t hen capital, the invaders

e tre at met with a spirited resistance, but a.Her severe :fighting forced t heir fr om wa.y t o the vicinity of the city. The K in g of P egu, ns h rtcl lmp­ ~ thi a . pened t o him in Ara.lw.n, fou nd t he defences so strong. and by reason of the channels of the river so di ffi cul t to approach by an army, that, on the advice of Bnring N rnmg. he c1 et et·m i!lec1 t o Tetreat. The difficulty of feeding his large army also eontribntecl to this resolution. The Sian,ese jncessnntly altncketl the retreatin g· invaders, thousands of whom were slain or cliecl of hunger and disease. F ortunately for the Bmmese King, t ho son-in-htw of the King of Siam was taken p risoner in a skirm ish . 'l'bis led t o 11egotiations, and t he Burmo-Tah1ing army wn.s allowed to continue its retreat without f urthel' attack. The expedi tion occupied .fim months.

1. I n the lt ist() ry of Siam, t. his fic sb i nmBion l1y thP King of Pagu is stated t o b tw e occurred A. D. l 54S. See D owr i ng · ~ Siam V ol 1. p. 46. [ 13 ]

JI.

Introduction.

'rhe last paper closed with the assassinRtion of JYiintara Shweti which took place at about 8 a.m. on Wednesday the 1st. of waxing Kaso n• 912 (A. D. 1550.) while he was on hi s way to capture a white elephant, the fin ding of which was falsely reported to him a s an artifice to a.llnre him n.w.Ly from the c,tpital cl.llcl fro111 those who were faithful to him. 'rhe assassin's brothet·, Tlw,mein Sa.wtut, a Mon n ub]em::m, who was go1·ernor of Sittaung aHl ,-..,ho was the leader of t he plot and the instigator of the foul Ill uruer, gathered his partisans, fortified Sittaung and proclaimed himself King undet· the name of Tharnein Setkawa w.

At that time Bayin Naung, or to give his full mtme Bayin Naung Kyawclin Nawrata, was at Dala trying to suppress a rebellion headed by another Mon nobleman named Thamein Tawrama. Bayin Jaung's brothel' Thihathu 'IVho was viceroy of Toungoo was at HanthawaLl cly, b t·ing call ed over from Toungoo t.o look after the affairs in Ha.nthawacldy. vVhen news of the cle,t·th of :.\Iintctra Shweti reached Hanthawaddy, Thihathu and his followe rs mctrched as quickly as they co uld to Tonngoo, and after making the defences of the city strong, he proclaimed himself indepenllent assuming the name of Min Gaung. So did the viceroy of Prome, Thaclo DcmHt Yaza who assumed the name of Thado Tlm. Many of the provincial governors also tried to be as independent as theJ' could. Thus, the kingdom consolidated hy Mintara Shweti only about ten or fifteen years ago was again broken up into snu~ ll states.

Ba.yin Naung Kyawclin Nawr,tta ha.cl, as we have seen in the account of Mintara Shweti's invasion of Siam, pl'Oved himself the most capable man both in council chum bet· and in the field of battle. It is no wonder then that he was looked upon as the most suitable successor to Mintara Shweti by such of the right minded pthiots who desired to see a united Bm·ma. In fct. ct, when Minbra, Shweti became so aclclictecl to drink that he very often committed acts of manifest injustice and capriciousness, the nobles r equested Bayin

1. May. Property of the Siam Society's Library BANGKOK~------[ 14 J

Naung to depose his brother-iu-lctw and m::Ll{e himself King. But with a fidelity very rare in those da.ys, llayin N aung very politely refused the offer of the crown, saying he could noi; be ungrateful. However, after the dea.th of l\Iinta.m Shweti he a.spirecl to sovereign authority not only over a s;mall state or kingdom bnt tWel' the whole o£ Burma proper and Hanthawaddy. His ambition was more than £uifillec1, for when his thoughts tumecl to conquest abrottd he W

tion secure1 he consulted bis nobles ~Ls to the invn.sion of Sia.m, :saying that it was tributary to Burma after the conquest of Mintara, Nhweti, but that it had again rtssertecl iuclepenclence. He WTheinni an­ other Shan State on the borders of China, or to mal'ch south tO>

2. November.

"· ".l J,) ]

Zinme ( Chiengmai ), the cfLp ita,l of the co untry known a~ Haribonza ( Haribhunjaya . z.a with two regiments of cava.lry and ten regiments of infantry ll1ltrchell in t he van; then came the King··s own el i vision consisting of four regin1euts of cav::Llry and twelve regiments of infantr-y, tt nd the rear was under the King of Toungoo with a like fc) rce a,:; t lt e van. The aux­ ili,wi.es consisted of Shwerecl tho defendees and occupieLl the city. "'\Vhen half the city fell, the Kiug of Chiengmai left it ~tncl went to the invader with presents of silks, satins, laces, musk, amber etc· and asked to be spared his life. 'l'he Bmmese Sovereign had it proclaimed by bettt of gong that no one must be captured and taken as prisoners of war, and those already taken should be set at libert,r at once, giving· as his reason for this act of mercy that Chiengmai was a place "vhere Bncldhism hac1 rtlready been established.

The King of Cl1ieugmai Wagaung· 3 920 (A. D. 1558). The return was somewhat

3. August. [ 17 J delayed by Laving again to punish the S

:Mention is made, in the H manu an Yazawi;1 , of King­ Kyawdiu Nawrata having sent whole families of ski ll ed artisans and hn ndicraftsmen, such as prtinters, lathe workers, gold and eilversmiths, bhtcksmiths, bt\)llZ 3 w;)r:-:era, m :13Jtl~, hcquet· workers; dyers, embroiderers, perfumers and also men skilled in the training and care of elephants and ponies, as well as those skilled in the culinary art, to Hanthaw·addy and made them settle down there. It is also mentioned that he sent learned Buddhist priests from H anthawaddy with portions of the Tripi taka which were found wanting in the collections at Chiengmai.

W ithin two or three months of his arrival in Ava, report crLme from Chiengmai of the preparat ions made by Bra-Se-Zit, King of Linzin, to attack Chiengmai. The report further sa.id that the chiefs of Bt·e, 4 Anan, 5 Lagun, 6 Tuming, 7 ancl Zinlmung 8 had joined the Kin g of Linzin. King Kyawdin Na\vrn.ta summonP.c1 his councillors and asked their advice. The l\1aha Up?.ynza was of opinion that a large fo1·ce need not be sent, ns there was already a fairly good force under Binnya Dala and Binnya. Set at Chiengmrti, and the King of Ohiengmai also had a fairly good force of all arms of his own. He thought if orders were sent to the Sftwbwas of Moue and NJ'aungywe to go a.nJ. assist Chiengmai, t he combined forces would be sufficient to repel an attack. The King of Prome, on the other hand, was of different opinion and took a more serious view of the situation, saying that Linzin was a kingdom sufficiently shong in itself, and it l1ad been further reinforced by the uooperation of the cl1iefs of Bre and An an; and then again, it was not many months

4. Muang Phril . 5. Muang Nan. 6. Nakon Lampang. 7. Chiengrai ? 8. Chiengkhong. 1 [ 18 J

-since that Chiengmai was conquered, and the faithfulness of the nobles in Chiengmai had as yet no test or proof. He recommended sending au army under the command of one or the other of the King's sons ot· brothers. The latter suggestion was approved of by King Kyawdin Nawratttlle:l, the whole expeditionary army was recalled.

Thus ended Ba.yin Naung's or Bayin Naung Kaywdin N awrata's invasion of Northem Siam: and it W in the fall of Ayuthia which will be den.lt with in the followino- paper. ""

9. December. 10. Chieng-Se;1? [ 19 ]

Tl1 e Hmannau Yazawin gives a chronological list of eighteen Kings of Chiengmai, from Sakbraj 6.)6 (A. D. 1294.) to 920 ( A. D. 135S.) t he year in which Chiengmai became a dependency

of Bmma. The list is given as an appendix to this papet·1 and it may b of interest to compn.re it with the chronicles of Chiengmai.

SIR ARfHUR P. PHAYRE'S

ACCOUNT OF THE ~ARRA.TIVE CO~TAINED IN THE SECOND PAPEH..

Subdues Hureug Na.ung retumed to P egu, but the following yea Zimm C ~ had to punish the sta.tes of Thiboa and Mone. From the In.tter h marched on to Zimme, the Chief of whi ch had assisted that stat The country presented grave difficulties, but t!te city was rertche after forty-five days of a rduous march. The King was co mpelle to sunencler his cn.pital and swore allegiance to the invader He agreed to pay au annual tribute of elephants, horses, siH ;wcl other products of his country. Au army of occupati was place L1 at Zimme to enforce the tt·eaty ancl watch tl August A. D. frontiers of Siam and Lengzeng or Laos. 1 The conqueror th~;; 1558 ' returned to Ava,. He at once commenced to settle the tfLx

t ion pa,yable by t he people of Burma, and received the homa,0 of the Chiefs of t he co untr.)' East of Bamoa up to the front i ~ of China,. They were excuseL1 ft·om paying tribute, pl'Obab from dl'ead of offending the Emperor oE that co untl'y. vVhil thus employed, news was brought that the King of Laos ( Lengzeng was gathering a force to attack the Bum~ e:;e arm in Zimme. 'l'he King of Ava. was at once sent with rein(orcemenil and the attack having bee n repelled, he was recalled. Bmer May A. D. Naung then proceeded to Pegu, where he anived at the beginnin 1559. of the rainy season. ------·------l . L engzeng is the Burmese name for what was the chief cit y I,aos, situated on or near Lo the Mekong river, a considem ble listan below Kiang Kheng. The seat of govemment appears at differe periods to haYe been Luang Phrabang, Viengchang, and Lantchiang. ~ Captain :w. C. M'Leod's Journal, p. 39: Travels by Louis de Carne. 12 5; Travels by Mouhot, vol. II. p. H,1 ; aud Bowring's Siam, vol. . \l· 8. not.e. [ 20 APPENDIX.

List of King·s of Chiengmai as given in the Hmannan Yazawin.

In the year 388 King Anawrata of Arimaddan~t PngarR.ma (Pagan) conquered HaribOnza with its capital Zinme ( Chiengmai) and it became a tributary kingdom to Pagan, and remained so till the year 656, wheu in the reign of King Kya\T-zwa of P agan , Chiengmai became aga,in independent nnc1er its the then Kin Binnya Saw M aing Re. - -,­ -----,---- 1 -§ ~ @ ro \ o~§ Seria,J :R eltt t iousll ip o ...... o .o v>o o:;;! I ·1 (1):2 ~ 2 ~=1 ~,.. · en ~(!.}~ ca~o No. LO ono a.Hotller Q.:J z~Q;)=w.:. l Ac;\~ ~.2 ;.. ,g ~ -----~ ------'-----'--I -'---~ 1 1 Binnya Saw Main g Re 636 / 37 693 2 , Thane (Sen) Pu Chun Kreul son 0f No. 1 698 2 605 3 Chun Taron son of BinnyaRam 695 3 698 Naw Son Taron son of N o. :-3 698 4 702 5 Thane Bu , , Xo . .-J , 7 0~ 5 707 1 6 Ke Byn , , No. :) 707 \ 12 ' 719 7 Saw Ba Y n , , r-·o . li 71!) 13 753:~ 8 Saw Kaso , , L\ o. 7 782 7 709 9 'J lmne J'.lain g son-in-larr of No. 8 739 3 1 742 10 Than Bi son of No. 9 742 LJ.O 1 782 11 Saw Lon , , !\· o.10 782 35 817 12 Saw Nyat ,, , No. 1J 817 1 8 825 13 Binnya Gvan ,, , No. 12 825 40 805 1 1 14 Maing J';: " , ,, No. 1;3 1 865 3<1· 89!) 1 15 Binnya Se , , , 1'\o. 14- 899 , 5 904 16 1 Saw Maing , . , No. 15 90-L 1 2 906 17 Queen Zalanpa •rlJiri 1 I Thuc1ama Maha-dewi I (~u ee n of No. 1G - I (JalampaSiriSuc1hamm fi. and t he Ki ng of 906 1 7 91 3* Mahs,-Devi ) and King Linzin I I Bra-Sc-Zit of Linzin. 1 18 Bra-Than son of Binnya Gyn.n 1 913 7 920t No. 13. * In 91 3 the King of Linzin returned to Linzin and the Queen raised No. 18 to the throne t In 920 Bayin Naung Kyawdin Nawrata conquered Chiengmai, ancl Bra Than reigned as tributary King. [ 21 ]

III Introduction. The second paper closell with Ba.yin N

In the year 920 (A. D. I 5 6~) King Kyawclin Nrnvrata, 11n1st lmve heard that the I\ing of Siam had acquirecl four 11ew white elephants. He eYiclently expected t :> be presented wi tl1 one of them, but as there was no sign of his expectation being f ul6lled, he ~e nt a messn,ge asking fo r one white elephant . His Siamese i\J ajest,Y sent an evasive aml somewl1at sarc::1stic repl,Y to the effect t hat if the King of Bnrma practised t he ten kingly virtues, n white elephant would be giren. 'I he repl,Y offended King Kyawcliu Tawrata and he amde up his mind to invade ancl conque1· Si,LnL fl e c:ited instances in which the Kings of Siam had to present white elephants to the Kings of Hanthawadcly, S

1. Biij:idhiriij. [ 22 ]

Hanthawa.cldy, those of Yocl;tya, Linzin, and L::twa.ik wet·e the most powerful, a.ncl an army like the one employecl b conquet· t he country of the Shans and Y uns would not be sufficient to subdue a powerful kingdom like Yodaya, a nd that therefore p reparations on a much grander scale than hitherto must b~ made so as to ensure success. One Binnya Da.la said that if all t he tributary kings and chiefs were made to follow the expeditioa with their quota of forces there could he no doubt H.bout the object being attained.

Accordingly orders were issued to all the tributary king;; a ntl chiefs fO l' preparations 0 11 a very extensive SCCLle t o be made, and an orclel' was also despatched at once to Chieugmai to repait· all the war bo::tts and h•:tnsport vessels ::mel bring them clown, the King of Chiengmai being requested to come down witl:t h is army and co-operate in the invasion.

The vast army mobili:;eLl on this occasion consisted of t he :following :- The advance c0lumn undet· t he co:umancl of K ing Kyawdin Nawrah';:; son-in-lctw, the King· of AvMohnyin and 1\fogaung_ 'l'he third column under his brothe1· the King of Prome also contained the same number of elephants, horse ancl men. 'l'he Shan contingents wel'e tlwse under the Sa.wbwas of Onba.ung a nd Mone. His son 1\:Ialta U payaza took the co mmand of the fourtl1 column composed of ._L r egiments of cavctlry 1000 strong and 10 r egiments of infa.ntry with 400 eleph

'Ihe King of Chiengmai, on t·ec eipt of the order from his su_­ zerain, vet·y promptly ca.rried out the r epair of the boats phtc-i-ng the governors of Eincla-giri ancl B!lnma-giri in charge of the work. Subsequently, probabl_y mistrusting the result of the invasion aucl fearing the King of Siam n.s much as his Burman suzerain, he did not co me clown as requested. However, over 3')0 boats laden with provisions were brought down by t he govenors of Einda-giri and Bunma-giri bef,)re he coalLl take any n. ctire steps to prevent the bOLLts going down.

After the crtpture of Kamanpaik, Binnyn, Dala advised King Kyttwclin ~awrab, to sen1l columns to capture 'l'lw,ukkate, 3 Peikthala.uk, 4 1 huwannalauk, 5 Pitse, 6 atlll 'l'a.ninthru·i, 7 for then, he saiLl, the Siitmese Kin g- would be <(like a bircl clipped of its wings." The Burmese King- liked the iclea., ancl acco1·clingly the two columns under the King of 'I'oungoo and. his son JYhtha. Upa.ya,;a. v. ere sent to operate aga.iust Thauklmte; those under the Kiugs of AvR. and Prome against Peikth < d~Lnk , while he himself marched towards Thuwa.nnahwk.

'Iho governor of Thaukkate met t he inv retire; and ill the subsequent assault by th ~ Bmmes ,, the city wets taken and the govemor Cfl.ptnrecl a1~d. removed to 'I'hnwannabuk. The gove m or of P eik'halauk m

.) ~ o v e m ·l e l'. :). Suk!wth:...i. 4 :P h is nnl6k. 5. Swankhaluk ? (-\. Phichai. 7. T e nn,ss e rim. [ 24 ] days no action was taken in order to giv e rest to the men and animals, so necessary after a long ma.rch. On the sixth day a general assault was made on the city which fell into the ha nds of the invaders and the governor was captured and tak en t o Thuwannalauk. The governor of Thuwannalauk made no resistance, but greeted King Kyawdin Nawrata on the way with presents, offering submission. The Burmese King went on to Thuw::mnrtlank and there waited for the arrival of the forces directed against Thaukkate a.nd Peikthalauk. "While so waiting the goveruor of P its(' came to 'l'huwannalauk and form::llly tenc1ered submission. When all 'vere assembled at Thuwannalauk a general m ove soutlnnL rc1 s was again made, and Oya Da,m:tyaza,, Oya ~huwannalctuk ancl Oya Pitse were ordered to follow the expedition. On arrival at Thawnnlmlauk 7 a new disposition of the forces was made. The King o£ Prome with hi3 men mts ordered to take to l:o::tts and proceed by water. 0£ the forces nnrching by land, the column under the Maha Upayaz

At tho first en c::nn pment after the march from TlunrunknJauk Oya Damn,yaza ashed permission of Ki ng Kyawdin N awn1t,L t o send a message to t he King of Siam to the effect that s ubmissiolll w ould be the wisest course, becn,use to offer resisbnce would be futile against such a vastly superior army as the one t hen b rought by the invader . P ermission being acco rc1e c1 , tho message w as sent ; but H is Sia,mese 111::tjesty must have greatly resontecl t he und uly low estimate of his powet· ancl reso m·oe3 co nveyecl j n it, for those _who brought it were forthwith sent t o prison, a nd orders were ::l. t once issued to his son Bra .Mahein, the .Crown Prince, t o intercept tho Burmese on the way. H e was ordered to take with him 300 wa,r boats armed with artillery :md other munitions of \Yar, and the force of Kala, 9 Brin-gJi 10 ( ll'erin gi. )

7 S wankhalok. 9 Foreigner. 10 A t erm generall y applied to Roman Catholics; P ortuguese? [ 23 J

On information reaching King Kyawclin Nawrata of this ~fi rst attempt from the Siamese capital to stop him in his march, l1e despatched thrae officers each with four squadrons of cavalry to reconnoitre. This prnty came in contact with the Siamese f orces under the Crown Prince who landed his artillery and the "Kala" force and shell ed the enemy's cavalry with good· e rect. 'J l1e Burmese loss in this skirmish must l1 ave ber~n very l1ea vy indeed, because the Burmese hi ~;to rian admitted that the casualities were great. H owever, while the Sia,mese artillery handled by the "Kalas" were doing grea,t destruction in the Burmese cavalry, tha forces under the Maha, U payaza and the· K ing of Toungoo arrived, in time to save the situation and to d rive the Siamese forces back to their boats. J nst at this critical moment, as if fortune specia,lly fa,vourecl the Burmese, -the boats under the King of Prome appeared on the scene. Attacked by land as well as by water, the Siamese boats could -:110t maintain their position long anc1 were defeatecl and scattered, O ver a hundred wa, r bo::tts with all theit· armaments ancl about :200 n1en were captured ; and there were also ~nan y killed, 'I he Crown Prince made his escape in a specially fast canoe and. 1·eturned to the capital. . Nothing daunted, His Majes ty of Si

The Siamese forces under the Crown Prince ancl the K in g's 1Jrother again met tho Bunne~e cavalry who were always ahead of the main army, ancl forced them to retire. Following up the re­ treating cavalry they came upon the forces under ·the Maha Upayaza a nd the Kings of Toungoo ancl Am, and a battle was fought i!l ~Yhi c h the Siamese forces were defeated and compelled to faJl back c.n the 'fortified camp at Lonkah. 'l'he Burmese followed up their

11, Thung Phali ? [ 26 J

success and reached L(l nlmli, wh ere t hey awaited the arrival of their King. As soon as he arrived, he decided not to delay but b a,ttack the camp at once. The assault was successful and the camp ·fell into the hands of the Burmese on Monday the 11th. of waning T[Lb oclwe 12 925 ( A, D. 156-J..) '1 he Ring of Siam and his son. and brother t ook t o horse and quickly retreated t o t he c'lpita.l. It is saiLl tlmt t hree ships were cn,ptured on the fall of Loukali ; from this it is evident that Lonkali must have been either on t he bank or in the vicinity of a river. King Kyawdin N avVl'ata occupied Lonlmli and remained there, sending t he forces under his son and brothers t o invest the capita.J. F rom this also it a. ppeai·s tha,t Li'l nk n, li co uhl not be far f rom Ayuthia . With t heir heavy artillery the investin g forces c:1nsed <"t shower of shot and shell to f,dl into t he city, and this bombardment greatly terrified the in habit,mts who then appealed to t heir Sovereign to submit . 'l'he King, aftet· cons ul ting t he royal f

1..·) . Febru ary. [ 27 ]

-surrendet· of the tour white elerhants, but requested a persona] interview with their King "IVho should be accompanied by his so n, the Crmvn P rince. He desired H is r::iiamese Majesty and the Crown Prince to come out in their royal robes of office and­ dignity and meet him in his ca,mp. On Fridn.y the 8th of waxing T,"Lbn.ung 13 92i.l (A. D. J 5o"L) the King of Siam and his so n Bra, 1\'Iahein> the Crown P rince, proceeded on elephants from the city to intet·view King KyawLlin Nawrab in his camp. Three white elephants, two male and one fe male, were n,lso taken as presents in addition to the usual presents of cloths of silk, wool, satin, ancl sweet smelling woods, u nguents, liquids etc. Tlle Siftmese Sovereign, on alighting from the elephant n,t the entrance to the camp, was received by two chief nobles on the personal staff of the Bmmese So1rereigt1 ancl was caniecl in a royal sechn chait· to the place assign eel. The same honour was not accon1ecl to the Crown Prince who w·as received by two other Burmese nobles, he Iuving to walk up to his place. The personal attendants oE the Siamese King- a.ncl Crowtl Prince were replaced by Bmmese attenchnts. No form oE obei:;ance­ was exacted from the Sit"Lmesc Sovereign, and if the discourte~y f his not being receivec1 personally hy the Burmese Kiug were jguorecl, the n,1e eting of the two l\fonarchs W<"LS on ec1ufll terms. P b.ces we re also assigned for the Burmese tribubrJ kings n,ml nobles to lJe present at 1he meeting. T hen when a.ll were sea. ted i n t heir places, King Kya1din ~ <"Lwmt<"L came out from [l,ll inner n,pa,rtment. The meeting between the two Sovet·eigns co uld not hare been long j uclgi ng· from the conversation rccot·l1ecl in the Hmanna.n History, which on the part of the Burmese Sovereig-u consisted of an egotist.ic itntl vainglorious procLtmn.tion of his might and power, at1l1 on the p<1rt of the Siamese Sovereign o[ a Jn nnb!c a clmission of his itubility to co ntencl in ttrms. Then the O

13. :March. r 28 J "'"\Yith all privileges and h onours enjoyed by them formerly. The o1d King, his second son J3ra lla.rnathun and Aukbya Setki were 1·equested to accompany the Burmese King to Hn.nthawaclcly with tl1eir families. The fo ur white elephants which apparently offered a cause for the commencement of hostilities were also taken away. The annual tribute was fixed at 30 war elephants, 300 ticals of silver, and the shipping revenue of Tenasserim.

It is mentioned that the old King of Siam gave Ki ng Kya.w-­ c1in Nawrata one of his daughters in marriage, together with l)l'esents of a complete prtraphem,alia of gold weighing one hnn­ ilred catties, one hundred ticals of sih·er, and ten chosen elepha.uts.

It is also mentioned that King Kyawdin Nawrata too', awiLJ em this occasion, as he did when he conquered Ohiengmai, whole families of skilled handicntftsmen and persons profic ient in other })l'Ofessions to Hn.nthawaddy and made them settle clown there; :mel that before he left Ayuthi

Bayin N"anng Kyavrdin Rawrata's relations with Siam did 11ot end here. For some time subsequent to the conquest of J.\yuthia or Southern Siam. the scene of his aucl his son's activity was transferred t o Northem f:lia m from PhisnulOk up to Ohiengmai and Linzin and the town_s round about. He ag:tin invaded lower Siam and again c ~1p tmecl Ayuthia, this t ime giving up the capital to sack and plunder. His subsequent opemtions leltcl ing up to this second fall of Ayuthia wi ll be giYen in subsequent papers.

14. April. 15. June. [ 2D ]

SIR ARTHUH P. PHAYRE'S ACCOUNT OF THE

NARRATIVE CO~TAlNED IN THB.J THH'D PAPEH.

---:o:---

Invasion of The Kings of Kings, notwithstanding his power and glory, Siam and capture of felt keenlJ' the want of one distinctive mr.nk in popular estimation the capital. of a great Buddhist l::lovereign in Indo-l'l1ina, tile possession of

1, In ihe history of Siam this invasion is stated t

APPENDIX.

List of Kings of Ayuthia as given in the Hmannan History.

Date of Commence~ No. of Date or I Name of Eiu ~s RE 1\IARIUi, N~. l ment of j ettl'ti death cr r e if,'ll, reignc'l deposition. I' __ I_ - ---- ·------·------J IBm Ya.zi~ dibadi 710 20 730 2, Bra YazrL JYLLthun 730 10 740 Son of No. 1 3, Parama Yaza, 7·10 D 749 ,, No. 2 I " ,4, Maha Damayaza, 749 19 768 No. 0 " " 5 Bnt Setlmbat 7G8 6 77"1 No. 4 I " "

6 Pttwra Hautlw, 77·1 87 811 I ,, No. 5 I " 7 P

'f In 910 Ayuthia was conquered by l\1intara Shwoti, but again became independent the foll owi ng year on the death of 11'Iintar ~ L Shweti. In 926 Bayin Nattilg Ky rmc1in Nawmta n~aill co nqueret1 and took Aynthia,

\ 1 [ 31 J IV. Introduction. In the la st precedin g paper the natTative closed with the Teturu of King Kyawdin Nawrata t o Ha. nthawacl dy aft at· his suc­ cessful inva sion of Southem Siam ancl the capitulation of Aynthia . lie was accompanied by the old King of Siam who abdicated the throne, and his second son. Hanthawaddy was rea.ched j ust at the beginning of the rains which in t hose clays see m tt> have put a s top to all military operations. The respite in King Kyawdin Nawrata's martial energy and activity was short and temporary, f or as soon as the rainy season was over warlike preparations were· a gain made. W e have seen t hat \Yh en King Kyawc1in N awrata invaded S outhern Siam, t he King of Chiengmai was request ed, as a tributary K in g, to co-operate in person . This the King of Chiengmai failed t o do, most probably mistrusting the res ult of the invasion ancl fearing to offend the King of Siam by his presence amo11 g t he h ostile forces. His Majesty of Bm ma being very much offe nc1 eL1 :ott t his failme, wa s bent upon punishing the delinquent.

- - : )o( :--

At the close of the ra,i ns which se~ in irnmecliat.el.r aftet· Kin g Kyawdin Nawrata's arriv-a l in his capital, he caJled a coutlci.l , ~ ons i st i n g of hi s sou niaha L" pn.ya za anrl t he nobles, to deliberate on the questiou of t he punit i,-e expedition to l'hiengmai. Tlte Maha Upayaza expressed t he opinion that t he King · of Chiengmai thought Ay nthia co uld not be conquered, aml that if such mts the case his presence in t he inv,tding army would be a cn. nse for o:ffence and reprisa l on t he part of his neighbour and kinsman, t l1e King of Siam. Now that Ayuthia had been redu ced t o a dependent :kingdom, a mere sh ow of force ,,-oul Ll be sufficient to bring the K ing of Cl1iengma.i t o his senses as well as submission. One of the councillors SOh:kate by name differed from the nJaha Upayazft anc1 Eaicl that the King of Chiengmai was, fi·o m the beginnin g, eve1· thinking of t hrowing off the Burmft n suzerainty, a.n d was always more friendly di sposed towards his Siam ese n eig·h­ ·hour. Tl1e conquest of Ayuthia would have li t.tle or no ~ ffe ct in instilling fen. r in him aucl t eaching him t o respect I 32 J his suzerain, as he was 111 league with the Kings of Linzia and Lawaik, both which kingdoms were powel'fnl enough not to be­ thought lightly of. 'ro send an army based on a low estimate of t he enemy's strength would be unwise, and that an army ~imiiar to that employed against Aynthia, should be sent for success to be certain. King Kyawdin N awrata approved of the httter suggestion and in accordance with it the foilowing prepar

The King of Ava was ordered to ca.ll on the Sawbwas of ~Iogaung, Molmyin, Momeik, Onba,ung, 'l'hibaw, Nyaung·ywe a,ncl 111:one to accompany the expedition nith their contingents, and himself to take the command and march to Chiengmai via Mone~ with a total force, made up of seven Shan and tlll'ee Burmese regiments, consisting 000 elephants) 6000 horse and 120,00()­ men. '1'1Je forces from the capital Hanthawaddy were:- Five xegiments of cavalry and ten regiments of infantry under ~he command of .Maha, Upayam consisting of ;)00 elephants, 6000 horde. and 120,000 men, on the right; the same numbet· of regiments aml t he same number of elephants, hot·se anclmeu under the command of the Kiug of Prome in the centre; :wd a like force under the King of Toungoo on the left. In the rear was the column in which King Kyawdin Nawrata marched. lt W

On Uonchy the -lith of waning T,tz:Lungmon 3 Chul::t. S

On news of the advent of the Burmese ::tl·my spreadin g in tlu~ -country ro'uncl about, 'l'hrwe LOa governor of Zinthane, 5 Thane Lan govemor of LaguTI, the governor of Anan, and the governor of Turaing :fled to Chiengmai with their families. The King of Chieugnmi lutv ing grown wism· fl'om past experience of Bmmese a.rms a nd fearing punishment at the hands of hi3 suzerain clecidecl to submit and greet the invctder on the W

King Kyawdin Na.w rata, t hough not quite llisposed to believe these professions of loyaliy ancl fidelit.y, wrts nevertheless n ot inclined to express his opinions freely; nor was he a,t tha,t moment so ha,rcl-liel"Ll'tecl and vindictive as to pnni,;h t he King of Chiengmai, Rlthongh the sole purpose of. the expedition Wets to teach him a. lesson that order::; from a suzerain could not ue liisz·egan1eLl wi th impunity. He refminecl fl'om S

T!Je march was then continued to LalJ\) n where a. halt wa;:; made to awa.it the arrival of tlte column uncle1· the King of Ava.

3. Nowc mber. -±. Lampun. Prop rty of the 'J. Chieng-Sen. Siam S.ciety'~ LibrarY BANG t

-which' come via Moue. After fi ve days waiting the col umn arrived. In this column the number of Shan regiments exceedecl: tl10se of the Bur mese, there being seven of the fo rmer and t hree of t he latter. King Kyawc1in Nawra.ta ordered t he contingents led by the Sawbwas of Morn eik, Moganng, ancl Mohnyi.n t o join l1is column, and three of his regim ents were given in exchange to keep the strength of the column still up to t en regiments. He did this probably because he lmcl a poo t· opinion of the e ffic iency of the Shan troops, but more likely because he clirl not trust them ·Hm ch, ancl their preponderan ce i.n a division would be h ad policy ancl a danger t o the Burmese troops. The invader t hen on1erecl three columns t o march in three different directions in pmsuit of the governors of Zin t hane, Lagun, Anan, and Turaiug. The K in g of Ava with his 10 1:egiments, in wh ich the proportion of t he Burmese a nd the Shan units hacl been r en,pportionecl as explained above, in one direction ; t he go\ernor of Than awadtly with his 15 regiments of which 4 were Siamese u nder Oya Dtt lll <'1yaza,, Oya, 'l'hnwann alauk, Oya Thauldm,te and Oya P itse, in a nother ; the Malm UpayazrL with his 15 regiments, in a third. The inst ructions to them were t h at they were to demand of the Kin g of Linzin the smrencler of the fonr fngitive governors wh o hacl b ken refu ge ~wi t h h i.m, and on his refusing to give up the refugees to at tack am1 captm e L inzin. 'l.'he remaining three columns then marched t owards Chien gma i, The King of Prome wa s on the right, t he 1\ ing of Toungoo on the left, and King Kyawdin Nawrata in the centre.

T he governor of Zintlmne, on gettin g t o Ivio-Lt'\n forest m lliS flight, found he \ \"aS unaule to reach Linzi n in time. H e ;tn d his family and followers therefo re b y in hiding in the forest ; but 1.mfortunately for him, spies we nt and inform ed tlte Burmese Ring, then on his way to Ohiengmai, of t he fugitive gov ernor's place of l1iding. The King of '.l'oun goo ' vas at 011ce despatched to effect the capture of t he TI'hole party. T il e unfortnna,te governor seeing escape impossible calmly surrencl erccl , and when taken tv the presence of King Kyawc1in Nawrata, offered one of his chmghters and two of his best elephants, and prayed for c1emel1CJ, saying tlmt it was not from feelings of disloyalty or from any sinister designs against the authority of his suzerain that he took t o fl ight, lJnt r s5 J

simply through fear of facing the ire of His Burman Majesty that- 11e hid himself in the forest. King Kyawdin Nawrata, in exercise {)f mercy, the prerogative of kings, vet·y nobly spared the lives of the captives; moreover he said one of the ten kingly virtuei enjoined on him to control his anger and to be patient and forgiving. 'rhe governor and his family were again given the oath of allegiance, and his adherents were divide:l into batche3 and kept apart ft·om each other among the forces. Then the whole tl1l'ee columns marched to Zinthane. After anival there the King of Prome was ordered to march his column against Zinron. 6 Aftet· five marches, the commandet• sent a writteu ultimatum t o the govemor of Zinron either to surrenclet· Ot' to fight. In the free and ea,sy mannm· of showing defiance in those days, the govemor very promptly put to death the unfortunate carriet· of the ultimatum. This anget·ed the King of Prome and he marched day and night to Zinron, and on arrival there immediately attacked and took the town. The govemot· escaped with his family, and it was a good thing that he manageci to do so, otherwise he would receive little Ot' no quarter. The suc­ cessful commander capture(], and seized whatever was worth the trouble, and returned with his booty to Zinthane. His Majesty of Burma was highly pleased with the result of the operations and suitably rewarded all those who took p;nt in them. "While sta,ying at Zinthane the Sawbwa of Theinni arrived with a force of 100 elephants, 100() horse, and 10,000 men, and offered to co-operate saying that he, as a vassal, should, like the other Sawbwas, do his duty by his liege-lord. The Sawbwa of Kyaington, 7 hearing of the action of his neighbout· of Theinni, thought he would be in bad grace with his suzerain if he did not do the same. Accordingly he also came to Zinthane with a force of 100 elephants, 1,000 horse, and 10,000 men, and offered to t ake pa,rt in the operations. King Kyawdin Nawra,ta was very much g- mtified wi th this proof of loyalty and faithfulness, and told both the Sawbwas that their co n

·Chiengmai and the govemor of Zinthane had already surrendered,. a.ud as the army he had was more than sufficient to bt·ing the remaining recalcitrant govemors to their 1>enses again, he would not detain them, but would ask them to return to theit· territories and keep the frontier in pea.ce and order. He suitably rewarded them to show that he was not ungeateful for their offer of service and that he fully appreciated theit· loyalty as evidenced by their co ming unasked. After the departure of the t wo Sawbwas he moved on to Chiengmai, and there ma.de arran gem en ts fot· the future administm­ tion of the whole of the Yun country.

[What follows here has no dir0ct reference to Siam but to omit it from this narmtive would be leaving out a link in the chain of events directly referrin g to Riam , and thereby make the account appear disjointed and desultory. Therefore it is thought advisable to give as brieHy a:; possibl e certain events which took place in Hanthawaddy that 11 ecessitated the return in haste of Sia.m's great enemy.] Dming the absence of Ring Kyawdin Nawrata all the Shan prisoners of war brought over from their native land and made to settle d o~v n in the country ronnel about Hanthawaddy rose in rebellion and chose one among them as leader. They gradually increased, nm;nbering between twenty and thirty thousand, and plundered and pillaged the villages and helpless people as iS' the wn.y with rebels. They m ·u c he ~l on to the capital a nJ threatened it with att

8. This last statement is somewhat inconsistent, ·because the fom~ Oyas went witb one of the columns operating against Linzin and the recall of Oya Damayaza is not ment ioned any where. The only way to reconcile the inconsistency is to suppose that ordcJ'S were sent to wl1ere Oya Damayaza was, though the wording of the BUL'mese is not to that; effect. 9. "M:uy. 10. June. [ 38 J

After arrival in Hanthawaddy, :u1rl on seeing the handiwork of the rebels in the uharred remains of many splendid and costly temples, monasteries, salas, and other religious edifices built by l1imself and by the former Mon rulers, Damasedi (Dhammaceti) for instance, as well as in the burnt and dihtpidated condition of the 1·oyal pavilion in nhich he used to reside during the time of sports and festivities on the river, he became so angry that he did not even enter the. city but went ~tl·aight to Dala where the rebels were then assembled, and persomtlly dii'ected the operations. The native chronicler thought it worth while and took the trouble to record that ou this occasion, His Burman Majesty discarded all forms of conveyance and actually walked about on foot with a bejen"elled pai1• of san clals on . In the fight at Dala the rebels were utterly routed, over 700 being killed and over 7000 captured, This number subsequently rose to ovet· 10,000 men, probably on account of arrests made after­ wards. It was King Kyawclin Nawn1.ta's intention to burn the whole lot alive together with their wives who were also arrested after enquiry. He was however dissuaded from this dreadful deed of wholesale slaughter by the intercession of Burmese, Mon, and Yun learned priests, and only about 70 of the ringleaders were executed. Those who rendered good service in quelling this rebellion were suitably rewarded, special mention being made of the services of the King of Prome and the deposed king of Ava on whom high lionours were conferred. The Sawbwas of Momeik, Mogaung, and Mohnyin were permitted to return, When order was re-established, King Kyawdin N awrata set about r6lpairing and restoring the edifices and buildings on which the rebels had left their mark of wanton destruction and vanda1ism, ancl erecting new ones surpassing far in splendour and mag­ n ificence those built previously. vYe shall, however, leave him for the present with his pe1 ceful occupation of renova.ting and decorating his capita], and t urn ou1· attention again to Northern Siam and follow the fort un es of the three columns told off to pursue %e four fugitive governors, and left behind, when King Kyawdin N awrata returned from Ohiengmai, to prose cut~ their l) ~rpose to the end. [ 39 ]

Of the four governors, we have seen that the governor of Zinthane had already been captured and taken away to Hantha­ waddy. 'rhe remaining three on reaching Linziu swore fealty to Bra-Se-Zit, King of Linzin. The King with the three governol's then fortified Maing-San 11 and with a force of 100 elephants,. 8,000 horse, and 20,000 men awaited to make a stand against -the pursuers. It took 32 marches for the three columns to reach Maing-San, and soon after arrival, the Maha Upayaza asked his colleagues as to the steps to be taken, whether to parley or to attack. BinnyfL Dala advised to defer the attack in order to give· 1·est to the wearied troops, to survey and get to know the country round, and to gain intelligence of the enemy's strength. The King of Ava was of a different opinion, saying that delay meant -disappointment and no fighting; because f1·om his past experience of the King of Linzin, he felt sure that the slippery King would steal away during the night: he cited the instance in which he, on a former occasion at Zinthane, was left utterly disappointed by the King of Linzin leaving so un ceremoniously the town which he was then holding. He said that there still was time for an assault, l)eing only 3 p. m. ; and without affording opportunity for further argument, issued orders to his officers to advance to the assault, himself setting the example by promptly lefLding his own elephant forward to charge. The other two commanders, could not but join in the assault, although they would have much preferred to have l'ested for a space. The town was actually stormed and taken just before sun­ down. The native historian mentions that while the King of Ava was forcing a breach in a wooden stockade with his elephant, a well directed spear hurled ( evidently with great force) from the mmparts of the town struck him in the right thigh. The s·pear pierced through the thigh and penetrated three inches into the elephant's side. Yet so eager was he in his work that he did not· even trouble to pull the spear out, but simply cut the handle off ancl left the spear-head in the wo und; but as t o whether the thigh 1·emain ed nailed t o the side of the elephant or not, is not stated. Though thus wounded he was able with his elephant to feU two Ol.' three pos ts of the stockade and a bl'each was thus effected.

11. lVIuang-Chan ? [ 40 J

~hr o u gh t his breach the storming forces entered and before long over­ po w ~re(( the defenders. As soo 11 as the Burmese forces managed to - "-· · ~ .. J,.. JJ g~ m~o the ,town, King Bra-Se-Zit of Linzin esca,ped with such teoops { ... " ;JJ...... a~ he was ,a·llle to save. Important person FL ges captured included t he bro~h ~r ~,£ the King of Linziu who was govemor of Maing-Sau, ancl who helcl tl/e position of Upayaza, t ogether with thirty nobles ; three ct u ~~n·s o( theJKing, namely Bm-Kyi, Ma.nura who was chtughter of t]le King of Siam, and Thirima who was daughter of t he Sawbwa of Kyaingp6n, t ogether with twenty concubines; also the King's niece Thiri-Lti.t a. There were a.lso captul'ecl over 400 elephants, 1000 li.orse, .and 5000 persons including men and wo men ; these last :tp ust have been t he inhabitants of t he town. The h-oops were per­ mitted tp~ ~oo·t without let or hindrance, a.nd they were so overjoyecl Wi th what they got in the WH.Y of booty t hat a musements, m usic and danc_ipg w~ r e indulged in the whole night t hrough. 'When all fighting was over, then only t he King of Ava tum ec1 to his wound, h ad the-spear-h0acl extracted and the wo nncl dressed. Ib is worthy ·of note that the K ing of Linzin is spoken of with t he epithet "Posses-sor of 100,000 elepha1 ts," in the account of this fi ght, n.nd occasionally in subsequent references to him. The M aha U )a.yaz::t then calleL1 his officers a.n cl :osked tlhJ;n "eJ'IJat,J st~p s thtly would propo .~e taking. One T hil'i Zeya. Kyc1.wdin ~tpli ed, tha._t the Ki!!g of Linzin had made a. stJ.ncl because he thought ~ ~<-i'\1 gj l;l)_s Q.W~ forces; now that he knew that t hey were no match for the Burmese, he would lose lteart a.n cl certainly sul'render the tb ree govem ors ; h.e proposed a rest of about a week or so to ~mLbl e t he~ !nen a.'nd animals to re·~uperate, a. proposal welcomed by others ai{c1 H. dop'tecl . After this necess

TJ1 e t hre@: govem ors, O l' Binny

(lefeated. Binnya Thane was killed, his lieutenant Binnya Thena was captured togethet· with his elephant. Besides those 1. illed, about 30 elephants and 500 men were captured. The return then continued without further molestation, and by slow marches tbey arrived at Hanthawacldy in due course.

The .M aha U pltyaza at first intended to quarter at Maing·-San dmiug the approaching rains, but he subsequently changed his mind a nd consulted his colleagues as to the advisability of returning to Hanthawalldy. All were agreed to get back again, giving as their 1·eason that as long as they were there King Bra.-Se-Zit would not leave his hiding place. Accordingly a letter was sent to I\ing Kyawdin N awrata, mentioning in detail the engagements they hacl ltacl, the successes they had obtained, and the prisone1·s they held, and closing the account of their exploits by saying that after his third defeat the King of Linzin had kept himself in hiding, and although the country had been scoured through and through by the pickecl troops, the wherettbouts of the King· could not be traced. At last the expected order of recall came and the whole of the forces left l\faing-San on the 5th of waxing Wagaung 12 Chula Sakkaraj 927 (A.. D. 1565.) and arrived at Ha.nthawaddy on the 11th of 13 waxing Thaclingynt , taking· two lunar months and six days to do the joumey. The troops must h cwe suffered gre::ttly on the w~y as it was then the middle of the rains. On the very clay of anival, the three queens and the twenty concubines, and the brother and the niece of the King of Linzin, as well as the nobles and other prisoners of war who had been brought away from Maing-San were pt·6sented to King Kya.wdin NawTatn .. The fair captives were ordered to be removed to the women's apartments ancl there maintained according to their mnk. The brother who was then only sixteen years of ltge wets not degraded in a.ny way bnt all owed to reside in Panth

12. August. 13. October. [ 44 ]

SIR ARTHUR PH:A.YRE'S ACCOUNT OF TH~ NARRA.TIV!l1 CONTAINED IN THE FOURTH PAPER.

---:0:--- The conqueror then set out on his return, and determined to punish the King of Zimme, who had failed to present himself on :the arrival of the invading army. But hearing that a rebellion had .broken out at Pegu, Bureng Naung hastened back, leaving his son .in command. On reaching his capital, he found that many of the fine build.ings he had erected had been burnt by the rebels. These .were rebuilt, and a new palace, surpassing the former one i11o magnificence, was commenced, but not finished until three years ,later. This palace is mentiond by European tl'avellers as composed of an extensive group of grand pavilions "as big as an ordinary city," having the roofs of some apartments covered with plates of solid gold. No doubt the three white elephants brought from Siam were housecl in some of these pavilions. peratlon In the meanwhile, the heir-apparent had not acted with vigour •Zimme. against the King of Zimme, who had fled eastward, and was sheltered by the King of Lengzeng. Bul'eng Naung detel'mined to ovetnber proceed himself to direct opera.tions. He left the capital, and . D. 156". proceeded to Labong, near Zimme. A large force marched with him, which included many Indians and four hundred Portuguese as gunners. The petty chiefs of the Yun tribe were ready to continue the struggle for independence, but the King of Zimme voluntarily submitted, saying he did not wish to reign longer. Detachments of troops were sent through the count1·y to put clown opposition. ebellion While the l

remnant of the rebel body. Thousands were taken prisoners, ancl the King intended to enclose them n.ll in a vast temporary building of bam boo, and burn them and their families alive according to Burmese law. On the intercession of the Buddhist monks he pardoned all except the leaders. The Yuva H

v.

Introduction.

The fom-th paper deals with the account of King Kyawdin Nawrata's punitive expedition to Chiengmrri, resulting in the King· of Chiengmai being taken away to H

On Monday the Uth. of waxing Tauodwo 1 Chula S

I n the same ye:1-r the sou-iu-la,w of the King- of Linzi11 who was g·overuor of l\'rn.ing-Pat 0<1111e to Hauthawaddy with 100 e l ep h ant ~. and 2000 followers, a11Ll requested to be enlisted into the service of the Burme::;e Kin g \rho, gmnl;iu g tl1e reque:;;t, [LU­ miuistered the oath of allegia.uce to hi Ill; then after conferring rank and h onoms on him, made grants of bncl to bi.s fo llowers fo r them to settle down in Hanthawaddy.

During the latter half of Chula Saklcamj 929, (A. D . 1567. ) the governor of Peikt Lalauk sent a message to Hanthawacldy saying that the King or Linzin WlLS Oil hi;; \V;L)' to attn,ck Pei.k t ht1la uk. His Burman Majesty ordered the Sawbwas of Mohll.)'in, i.\1oganug, 1\'fomeik, Onbaung, Nyaungywe, and ~ lon e to go vi<1 l\'Ione <1nc1 Chiengmai to the nssista nce of the governor of Peilctha.buk each with a force of 100 elephauts, 1000 hor:w, am1 10,000 men. When the Shan troops ani ved at lVLu ng- Haile in Ohiengmn.i territory, the K ing of Linzin bermne aware of their coming, and wisely ahmdou­ ing his object, ro 1·.Y quickl.r rotren,ted. On the fa.ct of the 1·etreat being repor: ed to the capital, orders were issued for the troops to r etum home; but when the six Sa1rbwa.s reached E incla­ giri the Sawbwas of Mogaung, .iUom eik, and \I ohnyin were sum­

moued to the capitcLl, 1 'bile the other three Were perm ittecl to return direct to their homes. All the six ''awbwas were rewarded for tl1eir pt'(Jmpt compliance with the on1ers from theit· suzemin.

The ne1Y city and the new palace co mmenced about two years ago ha;-ing been completed, His :\J ajesty e ntered the new city in state and nssumed possession of tiJe new palace on Monday the 4th of wauing Tagu 3 Chula s~1klmraj 929 (A. D. 1568. ) 'l'he next chty a public audience W

1. February. 2. Chieng-Rung. 3. April. [ 4.S J were confert·ed on them, as was the custom m those day;; when going into occup::ttion of a newly built city". Sumptuary laws continued to exist in Upper Burma under the Bunnese rule· down to the reign of the hst Burmese King. In the long list of recipients of such privileges were, N arabadi Sithu the deposed king ·of Ava, Bl'a Thadiyaza. the King of Si<:t'll who abdic:Ltecl the tlll'one, Narabadi the deposed chief of Mobye, a.nd Bnt Than the deposecl Iring of Chiengmai. These fom· wel'e acc)t•ded the privilege oE living in double-roofed houses painted white, a privilege gt·anted only to those of royal descent and to pet·sons closely related to the l'Oyalty. Here we have an inst•tuce of a reco t·

--: )o( :--

About the beginning of the year 930, (A. D. 1568.) the old King of Siam who had been accorded the privilege of living in Hauthawaddy in a double-roofed house painted white, askecl permission of King Kyawdin N awrata, to entet· the priesthood. The Burmese Sovereign not suspecting ::my ulterior motives most willingly granted permission, himself supplying the eight priestly utensils and other articles of use allowed to the members of the holy order. Soon after his admission to the holy brotherhood the old Siamese King requested that he might be allowed to go on a pilgrimage to Yodaya ( Ayuthia ). His Burman Majesty again ga,ve his ready assent to the request, perhaps still unsus­ pecting that the priest-king might have othet· missions than that of simple worship in the sacred shrines of his native Janel.

Bra Ra,mathun, the second so n of the old King, having· been required to follow the punitive expedition to Chiengmai, fell ill ancl died on the way. His wiclow also requested after the clepa.rture of the ·old King to be allowed to return to her native co untl:y. This request was also granted and she, together with her pet·sonal propet·ty and attendants, was sent back under the escot·t of a noblemen named Yazamanu, who, being still on the sunny side of life, soon fell a victim to the charms of the young widow, and they wet·e on terms of intimacy long before the party got fa,idy started on their home­ ward journey. Her brother-in-law, the reigning King of Siam having come to know of the nobleman'::; misconduct sent a written report to the King of Burma, who, emaged at the bett·ayal of his trust, 1 [ 50 j ordered the execution of tl~ e amorous nobl eman who thus paid clea.rly for his gallantry. The Burmese King then sent instea.cl n, much older man, Zala Thinran by name to escort the young widow home. The old King of Siam who had come to focbya ostensibly on a pilgrimage, abandoned hi s yellow robes soon after his arrival in his capital, and again interested him:;;elf in the a:ff,tirs of the st,tte. HA p ractically assumed tbe direc ti on of the foreign policy of the kingdom, and in consultation w.ith his son, the reigning Kin g, h e orclet· ecl the murder of Zala Thinran on the way.

Oya Da.may;1 ;t,<1. governor of Peiktlmla uk, watching current events with great kee ness

4. June. [ 5 1 separate operations taken a.gainst the different enernies or armies coming to Siam's rescue. Another nobleman Oktama Thirizeya T hura ( Uttama Sirijeya S-tu·a ) co ncuned with Binnya Dala's. £~pinion, but suggested that the in vasion should be postponed till the rains, which had just begun to set in, were over, point:ng o ut that immediate action was unnecessat·y, and, from experience gained in the previous invasions, they could very well gauge now their own fi.ghting strength

King Kyawdin l\awrata guided by this latter advice ordered f3awbwa Thaungkyi, Bi nuyO,OOO transport vessels. A report of the c )ming uf the two armies was sent to H anth

100 elephants, and 3,000 men. The whole army, including the au,xi­ liaries from Lagun Thima, then continued their advance upwards, and on their arrival at Peikthalauk ene

About five days aftet· this sortie the King of Linzin arrived with his army a.nd encamped so neat· the town that his camp -extended t'J the very edge of the moat smTonnLling the city. The govemor and the tht·ee Binnya.s again org,tnised a sortie with

'rhree clays after, the two Kings took concerted action and made a joint attack. They ha,d logs cut in the uppet· reaches of the river, and a raft about 300 fathoms long mts nmde. On it they put a quantity of dried wood and other infla,mmable mate1·ial, and just. about dawn they set tire to the material, and sent the fl:1-ming ra.f adrift from above the town. At the same time a combined attack both by land and water was made, the King of Siam with ove t· 2•J.0· wn.r boats and 50,000 men anJ the King of Linzin with the greater part of his army. The governor and Binnya Gyanclaw went out with a force of 100 elephants and 30,000 men and fought Linzin' .~ forces who were compelled to retire, leaving in addition to those killed in the fight, 70 elephants and 300 men as prisoners in the hands of the defenders. About 1,000 picked men, who were com­ missioned to put out the fire on the mft and kill the men· in chargP-> of it, also did their work well. The attack ft·om the Siamesa boa.ts: was repulsed by Binnya Lztw and Binnya Paran who shelled the [ 53 ] enemy's boats from the town, sinking soma and di11abling many. The remaining boats 'vithdrew, but the two Binnyas could not follow up their success as t hey had no boats. Thus the combinecl attack of the besieging forces pt·ovecl a co mplete failure. After this defeat of the besiegers, a challenge was shoutecl out from their camp calling on Binnya Gyanclaw to meet Linzin's general Binnya Lagun in single combat. Binnya Gyanclaw orderecl a reply to be shouted back that he would fight anyone. Sawbwa. Thaunglcyi and the other two Binnyas dicl not approve of the single co mbat, saying they co nld not know what deceitful plans or strat.Lgems the enemy might have; so they had a. reply shouted again to the enemy's camp saying that Binnya. Gyandaw was the servant o£ a most powerful sovereign who held many. crowned kings under his sway, while Binnya Lagun. was the servant of the King of Linzin, only a petty monarch, and under such conditions it would be derogatory to the dignity of Binnya Gyanda.w to £ght Binnya Lagun in single combat, but he would be glad to face the King of Linzin himself. Nothing how­ ever resulted from this mutual challenge. The besiegers withdrew to some dista.nce from the ci1y and remained surrounding it during the whole of the rainy season from the month of ·waga.ung 8 to Tazaungmon. 9 King Kyn.wdin .Nawntta had previously issued orders for the mobilization of the invading tnmy to be completed by the end of the mins, and consequently in the month of Thadin~yut 10 everything was ready for the march to Yodaya. The Hmannan History gives full details of the at·my, m e~1 ti o ning the names of the bri~ade commandm· and the second in command of each brigade, a,nd of the co mmanders of ead1 division of which there were five. The first

division under tlte Maha U payaza, was composed of 11 brigades7 each brigade conta,ining 100 elephants, l,O OO horse anc110,000 men ; the Shan contingents in thi! division formed two brigades, one com­ manded by the Sawbwa of Mogm111g and the other by _the Sawbwa> of Momeik: the second division was under the King of Prome ancl composed of the !lame number of brigades and the same number of units, the Shan levies forming· also two brigades under the Sa,wbwas 8. August. 9. :November. 10. Octobet·. [ 54 ] of Mohnyin and Bamaw: the third division was commanded by the King of 'l'oungoo and the fourth by the King· of Ava, the strength of each being the same as that of the first division; the Shan levies in the former were two brigades commanded by the Sawbwas of Thibaw and Theinni, and in the latter three brigades under the Sawbwas of Onbaung, Nyaungyw~, and :tYrone. The fifth division was under his nephew Min-ye Kyawclin and composed of five brigades, each containing 100 elephants, 1,000 horse and 10,000 men, but four of thes·e were foreign contingents commanded by Binnya Thane Lun, 13innya Th;tn Lan and Binnya Nan of Chiengmai, and the Sawbwa of Kyaing-T6n. 11 In all probability this division formed a complement of the body-guard division which contained 400 elephants 4,000 horse and 56,000 men distributed equally on the right and left and in the front and rear of His Ilbjesty, and the forces composing it clicl not start from Hanthawadcly but joined it at convenient places after the invading army hitd entered Siam. The body-guard division also contained 4·,000 Kala Brin-gyi (Portuguese?) gunners and 4,000 Kala Pathi ( Mohammedan Indian ) musketeers. This big army left Hanthawaddy on Sunday the 6th of waning Tha.dingyut Chula Sakharaj 930 (A. D. 1568). After t1 7 marches it reached :1 place called lncla w ( Roy to his capital, repaired all the defences round the city, mounted l1eavy artillery on the mmparts, and took in all available fighting men and provisions into it. At the summons of the invader Sawbwa Thaungkyi of Peikthalauk and the three Binnyas came down from Peikthalank with a force of 300 elephants, 4,000 horse and 60,000 men, and on arrival presented their Sovereign with what trophies of war they had been able to secure during the time they had been holding Peikthalauk against the combined forees of Yodaya and Lin;~in. His Majesty wa.s greatly pleased with the conduct and services ()£ Sawbwa Thaungkyi and Binnya Gyandaw and rewarded them

11. Chieng-Tung. r 55 J l1andsomely; but he was very much dissatisfied with Binnya Law· and Binnya Paran for the reason that when the King of Siam a.ttctekecl Peikthal::-.uk they remained only on the defensive in the city, and that if they had gone out ancl followed up their success· tl1en, the Siamese Sovereign would not have escaped. Biunya Law nnd Binnya Paran were therefore deprived of their command, ancl· thei1· honours, titles, aml attendants were also withdrawn.

1\ ing Kya.wdin N awrat

The invader then called a council of war ttncl requested the i\Jaha Upayaza and the other commanders to suggest the best means of bl{ing Yoclaya.. The MahtL Upayaza suggested to make a vigorous assault and reduce the capital at a single effort, giving as llis reason that assault on the city was extremely difficult owing to its being surrounded by water, so that it would be best to mttke one supreme effort rather than a series of assaults ; and also that a siege would not be advisable as it ·would be a matter of great difficulty to maintain an army of nearly a million men dming a protracted :;iege. King Kya.wdin Nawrata entertained a different opinion say­ ing that a siege wou ld be better; a~ regards provisioning he said be would send for all available grain a11d pl'Ovisions in Kamanpaik, Thmvannalauk, 'rhaukkate and Pitse and store them in big granaries. During the rains, field crops woulll be raised for the support of the army. There was of course no gainsn.ying to His Majesty's opinion and the whole a1·my W fLS acco rdingly ordered to inves t the city. For the purpose of erecting wooden stockades and forts, logs of about 3 or 4 'ztl k' 12 ::wd 15 or 16 'tnung ' 13 were obtained in the forests above Yoclaya and brough t clown the river. C u t he ea st and south sides of the city the river was narrow and the stoclmcles l'Vere built on the bank of the river opposite the city, ------12. The Burmese wo rd for t he Siamese " kam. " 13. The Burmese wo rd for the Siamese "sok. " [ 56 J

while on the west side, the river being wide, the stockades were -erected, after crossing the river, on the bank nearest the city. When the stockades and forts werfl ready, guns were mounted on them and the town was bombarded causing great damage to the buildings in the city. Several attempts were made to storm the city and scale the walls, but owing to the effective set·vice of the defender's artillery such attempts always proved a failure with l1eavy losses at each assault.

Finding his attempts fruitless, King Kyawdin Nawrata -devised another plan. He cause d e

His Burman ~1aj es t y was fast losing his patience ; and one -day he repro~ c h e d allltis genera-ls anr1 co mmanders saying that the repeated failure to b.ke the city was due to tl1 eir want of energy and self-!:'acrificing devotion to the ••ttainment of his object, and impressed on them that any remiss ness in ot· failure of duty would not be forgiven and the off ender would recei ve, irrespeeti ve of rank, more th

The brigade under Bin nya Set, commtmder, and Sa,w Taing K an, second in command, W

Some four months p

14. }i[ay. [ 58 J After the death of the of the olcl King, Bra Mahein the reigning King of Siam Cfl.llecl his mini;:;tet·s and nobles and said to them thus, "The King of Burma has laid siege to our city for many months; our arms have clone countless execution in his army but still his endeavoms to take the city see

. The J(ing of Liqziu whose assistance had keen appUed for by }lis Siamese Majesty came with a forc;;e of 1,000 eleph~nts, 8,,000· l10rs~ ~nd ~0 , 000 ·m~n. Ne\vs of the coming of tpis ' auxilia~y force was brought in by scouts seut out to rec.onnoitt·e. I~ is Burman Majesty desP,atched a fo t·ce of lQO elephants, 1,000 horse a.nd 40,000 men under the comm ;tnd. of the goyernor of Ye with th~ govern01: of 'Yagaru as second in cornmand to r~connoitre and find out the strength of the force from Linzin. They were ordered to­ })roceed only as far as a place called Nalabo. 15 This force on 1·eaching Nalabo encamped, and being some distance away from th~ ­ place where they had been kept under very strict discipline for m~ny months, a reaction set in, and both officers and f11en took their mission more as a holiday thau as a serious task ir.f}posed upon them. Apparently no precautions were taken t0 guard against sudden at- 1;.:'Lck; and when five days after theit· arrival, the King of Linzip an4 his army appeared on the scene and surpL"ised them, they were entirely defeated, the whole force together with the commander . . . being taken prisoners. The sceond iu command however managed to escape on horseoack with only about ten of his personal attendants. {)n reaching the main at·my he W

15. Lopburi ? [ 60 J the old King of Siam as a consequence of his breach of oath; naturally the besieged must have lost somewhat of their former spirit and enthusiasm, and if such should be the case it would be extremely unwise to ra.ise the siege, because to return and reinvest the city after quelling Linzin's forces would mean throwing away the arduous labo.n· of four or five months that had cost a great many lives, and starting operations afresh. ! f e was of opinion that ·half the investing army would be sufficient to fl'ighten the King of Linzin not to come face to face, but he wonld keep himself at ·a distance harassing foraging pa.L'ties. To pt·event this ha.mssing. his idea was to resort to stratagem by se nding Oya ll am to the King of Linzin with a forged message purporting to be ft·om the King of Siam appealing for an immediate march to the capital ; and when the unsuspecting King drew near, to smround and ·surprise him. King Kyawdin Nawra.ta likec1 the idea, and having summoned Oya Ram into his presence, told the · Sianiese nobleman that if he served well, he would be nost handsomely rewarded. Oya Ram was profuse in the expression of his gratitude fot· -sparing his life when his own King hn.J give n it away as a peace-offering. He even went so far as to say that such a debt of gratitudP. as he owed His Burman Majesty co ul cl not be adeqmLtely repaid by · ser vices rendered m A.ll his future existencRs until the atta innv~nt of Nirvama. ( Such exaggerated and extravagant expressions are not uncommon in Burmese literature). He pt·omisecl his new master tlHtt he would serve most loyally, fa.ithfully and to the best of his ability, sacrificing his life if necessary. Then the letter to be conveyed t o the King of Linziu was dl'afted jointly by Binnya Dala and Oya Ram. 'l'he substance of the lettet· was that the city l1ad been invested by the King of Burma fot· four or five months; and although a very large number of his force3 had died of disease aud from the shot and shell of the defenders, he did not, in the least, relax his energies. The defenders dared not go out of the city and attack the besiegers, beci1use the long expected assistance from Linzin had not al'l'i ved. The Li nzin auxiliat·y was req uestecl to march on as quickly as possible to the city so that a j oint attack could be made, when the defeat of the Bmmese would be certain. It may be mentioned here that the King of Linzin was addressea as " uncle" in the letter, not because he stood in that relationship- L 61 J

to the King of Sia.m, but because it "as ancl still is the etiquebte of the Burmese and the Siamese and of almost all oriental peoples to address a man not simply by name but to prefix terms denoting brother, uncle, grandfather, etc., accoc·ding to the relative ages of the person speaking and the person spoken to. Oya Ram went on his enand, aud on meeting the King of Linzin presented his let-te l'. He was asked a few questions rela,ting to some internal affairs of the city to test the authenticity of the message; these being .· atisfactol'ily answered, a matter of no difficulty to one in Oya Ra. m's pos ition, the King of Linzin was entirely disabused of any suspicions he might have had before, ancl he sent Oya Ram back, fix in g the date on whi ch he wou.ld arrive at the city. King Kyawdin Nawrata then made arrangements to attack L inzin's forces on the way. He withdrew the following brigades ancl commanders, namely, seven brigades contrJ.ining 100 elephants" 1,00:) horse and 50,001 men under the co mmand of the Maha, U pn.yaza who was p~ac ecl in the centt-e ; the King of Toungoo with a like f orce was on the left and the King of Ava, with a force similar to the other t wo on the right. He himself formed the reat·, also with seven brigades of the same stt·ength and formation. The King of Prome was left in charge of the besieging forces with. supreme authority ancl co ntrol. The forces withdrawn to open1.te against Linzin started on their mission on Fridn.y t he 9t!J. of waxing n flsJ m tt·ch frv :n Ayuthia. Aftee a slight s kil'm ish the B .ll'lU B3B c.wall'y retl'a .ttecl and. in fonnecl theit· respective columns of the lLppt·o:t ch of Linzin's fot·ces. The three com mflnders flt once issued ord ers to be prep

16. May. [ 62 J and wit.hhelcl his attack until Linzin's forces had gone round it. Before long, the two opposing armies were engaged in fight. The King of'Linzin hatl with him 1,000 war elephants 100 transport elephants SJOOO horse and 30,000 men ancl advanced, probably in single columnJ showing a bold front. Be seemea to gain ground and gradually moved onward until he went past the curve, when tl~e King .o£ Ava opened his atta.ck. The result of the King ~f Ava's manreilvre was that Linzin's forces were divided into two portions, after which one por~io!l was vigorously attacked by the King of .Ava 111mself and the other by the other two commanders. This skilful manreuvre and the subsequent vigorous attack on the eli vided force11~ al\eady crippled by the division, caused their utter·discom­ fitureJ and they were put to a disorderly rout, the King of Linzin fleeing with a force of about 20,000 men which he managed to withdraw in the confusion and disorder that ensued. The date of this battle is given as Friday the 8th. 17 of waxiug Kason 931 (A. D. 1569.). King Kyawdin Nawrata who was in the rear heard the report of guns, and believing that a battle must be going on, ordered a quick march taking a short straight cut to the curve in the 1·oad. He then came upon the King of Linz~n in full fiigh t, and pursued the flying forces until he was within a distance of . ' about ten miles from them, when they made their way into a bamboo jungle, The King of Linzin thinking escape impossible, ordered a I1alt and sent a message of submission to the pm·sne1·s. Tn the message he said that when the Burmese King invaded Chiengmai, the Malm Upayaza, and the King of Ava marched into .. Li_nzin territory and caused gre

17. Here the Burmese historian is evidently in error; because he says that the Burmese forces left Ayuthia on Friday the 9th of waxing Kason 931 and the battle was fought the next day. So that - either the day of starting must be Friday the 8th and the clay of battle · Saturday the 9th, or the former day was Friday the 9th and the latter Saturday the lOth. Friday the 9th is probably correct ; at least it is in accord with the date given for the death of the old King of Siam, which is Friday the 2nd of waxing Kason fl31 (A. D. 1569), i. e. a week previous, 63 unable to recover ft·om them. At the request of the King of Siam who had sent a written message appealing for assistance he had come, but only to be defeated by His Burman Majesty who must have been aided by powers 11upematuml, considering that the fireworks that had been prepared by him which were to have been discharged by specially devised machinery and which would have­ destroyed an army over a million strong, had been all rendered useless by a heavy shower of rain the d[ty previous to the battle. He concluded the message by begging his pursuer not to follow him into his country, promising that he would never thereafter offend His Burman Majesty, and saying that with the intention of taking the oath of allegiance he had halted in his flight, and would appear· before his suzerain to take the oath early the next morning, as there was no tin1e that evening to present himself for that purpose.

King Kyawdin Nawrata believed that the King of Linzinreally meant what he said in his messn,ge, and therefore enca.mped, as it was getting clark ali'!o. Linzin's chief knowing that his pursuer had. halted, took atlvantage of t he halt a,nd fled with a,ll ha.ste the whole 11ight. The next morning seeing only crowJ in Linzin 's camp His Burman Majesty ga.ve a hea.rty htugh and sa.id th1.t he w.mld m.uch to Linzin after the capture of Yodaya. He then returned to the­ siege taking with him one of the concubines of the King of Linzin, Mannraw Meikta ( Manuro Mitta. ) and about ten of het· attend

utmost. During one of the assaults on the city, the officers in the brigade of which Baya Kamani, _governor of Thanlyin (Syriam}, was the commandet·, ware urging on, with drawn s.vorcls, their mea who were hesitating to approach the walls of the city. Baya. Kamani, probably thinking that the officers wet·e unduly severe on their men, chased the officera with a nake1 sword in hand. The officers reported their commandet·'s conduct to their Sovereign who ordered the J{iug of Prome to nutke enquiries and report. The King of Prome dared not concea.l the facts from his Suzentin, but to soothe His Burman Majesty's temper ttnd obtain some mitig

'King. Kyawdin Nawrata's ch:uacter can be obtained, and one· can see that he thought vm·y little of the life of a fa.vomite servant oompare:l with the attainment of his object, and could without any feeling o1· ·sentiment order away the execution of one \'fho had served him faithfully and well, and whom he certainly loved; one can also see that when his temper was roused, he was insensible to the noble .and tender emotions that move a man to pity and forgiveness. The sight of a son bewailing the death of his father, and a faithful slave paying the last respects to his deceased master would, in an ordinary man even in bad temper, have softened his heart and mov-ed him to sympathy and co111passion, but in King Kyawdin Nawrata it only had the effect of inflaming his anger which had been kindled ancl which had as yet no time to cool dowq.

After this triple execution there W

-cause there could be not doubt about the fall of the capital. but if otherwise, the only loss he would suffer would be the person of the Siamese nobleman; and coming to the conclusion that the advantages derivable in the event of his plan turning out as he desired and hoped, far outweigh the disadvantages likely to ensue in case the plan proved a failure, he ordered Aukbya Setki to be relea5ed from confinement and brought into his presence. His Burman Majesty disclosed the plan to the Siamese nobleman and requested him to assist in the execution of it to the best of his ability, }H'Omising him the governorship of Peikthalauk with vice-regal rank, if success attended the venture. Auk bya f etki undertook to be faithful to the Burmese cause and do his utmost; he vras then given the oath of allegiance and sent on his mission under cover of darkness in a small boat pac1c11ecl by only two of his slaves, l1imself in heavy chains, so as to make it appear to Pis Si,unese JY[ajesty that he had escaped from the custody of the Burmese to rejoin his King and master in the defence of his fn.therl:tnd and to return to hi!! hearth and home. Unfortunately for Siam the only man who could have saved her capital from a disgraceful fall proved himself so unpatriotic as to betray his King and country and hand.them over to their enemy. The King of Siam greeted his father's tr~stecl nobleman as he would his own deceased fa.ther, little suspecting that in the wake of this noble traitor whom he was welcoming most joyfully, would soon follow most undesirable guests whom he would have to wel­ come with feelings just the very reverse of joyful; he gave his real enemy the entire control of the city, thereby strengthening the l1and that was to strike the death-blow to Siam's independence.

Aukbya Setki very soon founrl means for accomplishing his miSSion. He stationed patriotic an~ self-sacrificing commanders at places where access was difficult, and kept his own relatives, who had probably been taken into his confidence, at weak points where entry was easy. When his plans had matured and his arrangements had been completed, he sent a slave at night with a messa.ge to King Kyawdin Nawrata giving details of the arrangements, and fixing a night when the attack was to be made. His Burman Majesty was very 1Jleased, and on the night appointed, that part of the city mentioned in the message was assaulted; the defence, of course, was feeble ancl [ 67 J

the Bmmese forces entered the city, and very soon overpowered the· other defenders who wen~ not in the plot, probably being taken unexpectedly and umtwa.res. 'rhus on Tuesday the 4th. of waning Yf agaung 18 Chula Sn,kkaraj 931 ( A. D. 1-569.) did the capital of Siam fttll into the hctnds of the Burmese a seooncl time,. through the tt·eachery of one of her own sons whom fortune placed in high position and rank, but who turned his good fortune to the ignoble end of bP-traying his own co untry.

· TLe city was g i1·en up to plunder and the Burmese historin,n was particular enough t o record thcLt there was not a single one in. the whole of the 'fifty four brigades who did not obtain one or two coolie loads of loot ia the form of gold, silver, wearing appa.rel etc. Entertainments were held in every brigade for many clays, in celebration of the success achieved and in jubilittion of the end of their trials.

King Kyawdin NrLwrata then administered the oath of a lle2·iance to Bra Mahein and all his ministers and nobles. Such of the Siamese ministers, nobles and officials whose loyalty and !idelity were above suspicion were permitted to continue to hold their offices and appointments, but those who could not be trusted were removed and new men appointed. 1t was in the early half of the rains that the city was captured; a,nd during the whole of the rains, His Burman iYfftjesty rema,ined in the Siamese capital settling internal affairs and organizing the future administration of the country. The governors of the towns round about the • capital came in with presents and formally acknowledged his authority, taking the oath of allegianne. The Burmese historian records that the river rose very high then, and the country round Yodaya was like a vast sea. If that was true Aukbya Setki's treachery WfLS all the more deplorable, because the Burmese army would have been compelled to raise the siege and put to great difficulties and inconvenience, for there never was a king born yet "\vho could command the rising waters to subside.

During this period, the King of La\vaik sent a nobleman with presents to King Kyawdin Nawrata and besought Eis Burman . Majesty's assistance in furtherance of works f or the support of

18. August. r 6s J

Buddhism. The Burmese King made a donation of thirty viss 19 of silver tical pieces ( equal to 3000 ticals ) for the repairs of old ruinecl pagodas and phra-chedis in Lagun Lon. 2o

On Wednesday the -5th. of waning Tha,dingyut Chub. Sakkaraj 931, (A. D. 1069.) Sn,wbwa 'f'haungkyi (i.e. Oya Damayaza, .governor of Peikthalauk) was formally crowned and installed as King of Yodaya. His Burman Majesty then entrusted the newly crowned King with one hundt·ed ticals of silver and thirteen viss of gold to be devoted to repairing old pagodas and sacred shrines. He also requested the new King to perfo1·m the customary obsequies to the body of the deceased King Bra Thacliyaz1 which had been kept em balm eel.

The Burmese history makes no mention of the fate of Bra. M

-~

J 9. A viss is e.tual to 3.G5 l us. A voidupois. The But'ruese word "Peik t ha " is generally ugecl in the sense of catty, but it is always ] 00 ticals and not 80 ticals as in Siam. :20. Nakon Luang; probably Nakon Wat. , [ 69 J "TNT OF THE SIR ARTHUR P. PHAYRE'S .AUCO"L rrH PAPER. NARRATIVE CONTAINED IN THE FIF~ ---:o : --- mmotions For three yearH there was a pause in the wars and co The king which had so long disturbed and devastated the country. ·s in the of Lengzeng still ga,ve trouble to the Burmese office nalle his territory of Zimme, but his son-in-law ca,me in and of Pegu submission. Everything looked promising; the capital history ; was a scene of splenclout· exceeding all known in its pas Malacca, and trading ships from Europe, from India, and from e country freely entered the sea ports. With continued peace th tion, and might soon have recovered the terrible loss of popula distant decrease of agriculture, whieh the incessant wars i1 dulgence countries, rendered lasting pP.ace impossible. An i· •n enemy, granted, it may be, from a geuerous feeling towards a fall might, by hastened the catastt·ophe, which probably it was hoped of Si[l,m showing confidence, be averted. The deposed king n country had become a Rahan, and was permitted to go to his ow captivity. to worship. B is son, who had been his compa,nion in children. {lied, and his widow was allowed t o return home with her ~ tages fol' BralJ1ahin, the tributary king, when there were no hm ·ting his his loyalty, soon began to take meiL. m·es for asse1 her, who independence. In this he Wll,S supported by his fai ents with abandoned his monl<'s habit, n.ncl secretly in±iuenced ev ~~tung authority, if he did not opeuly assume it. Bm·eng 'N, at once made prepa,rations for another invasion of Siam. The brother-in-law of the t1·ibuttLry king, who was governor of Pitsa.lauk,

AugU!Jt, his treach Brama.hin, and appointed to a high command. 'rhrough Jfll, D. 1569, the besieg .rous machinations one of the city gates was opened, and C•pltal :Daketl. The city rs entered in the night, after a siege of seven months. 1 made pris as given up to plnncler. 'I'he unfortunate Bramahin was The ldng ner, ancl either was put to death or committed suicide. pointed Tl of kings remained in Ynthia for two months, and ap­ King. taungkyi, a member of the Zimme royal family, tributary

1. . n the history of Siam the promirient events of this invasion and siege c it)cide with the account given in the Burmese history ; but tlte date , ssigned for the cap~ure of the city is 1555. 'The Venetian traveller resar Fredericke, who was in Pegu and the neighbouring countries a pparently from 15~7 to 1569, places the "coming home of the king " fro this war in 1569. By the Burmese history he arrived home·

in 1570, .ee Bowring's Siam1 VOL. r. P. 51. [ 71 J VI. Introduction. It was with the deposition of King Bra Mahein and the raising of Oya Damayaza, governor of Peikthalttuk, to the throne of Yodaya by King Kyawdin Nawrata that the last preceding· paper ended. A ukbya Setki to whose treachery the fall of Yodaya was mainly attributable, was, as promised, offered the governorship of Peikthalauk with the rank and insignia of Theuabadi ( Seuapati), au. offer which he declined to accept, requesting that he might be . permitteJ to serve the Burmese King with residence at Hanthawaddy. In compliance with the wishes of the Siame>e nobleman, His Burman Majesty conferred on him the title of Binnya and made him governor of Dagon. As a further mark of royal favour, he was permitted to succeed to the property and possessions, as well as the retainers of the unfortunate Binuya Set who, in company with his lieutenant Saw Taing Kan, had been executed for having been so neglectful of his duties during the siege of Yodctya as to have made it possible for the Siamese to seize a few firearms and burn a few huts in his camp. In Burma, of old days, the giving of one man's property to another, a perfect shanger, was not uncommon; and in this connection it may be explained that the Burmese King was theoretically and practically the master of the life, person, and property of his subjects, and the owner of every inch of land over which he ruled. Neglect or disobedience of the Ki~1g's commands was almost as grave an offence as high treason and the punishment for it included confiscation of property. So when • Binnya fet was made to pay the penalty of his neglect with the sacrifice of l1is head, his property was confiscated, tint is, King into submission and subjection was mooted, King Kyawdin Nawrata opening the question with a vei led desire in fav.m r, and calling on all his generals to express their opinion. Aftel' the trouble and suffering of an arduous and protracted siege lasting uearly eight months, everyone of them would have been glad to [ i2 J return to their homes from which they had been away quite a year, but knowing in which direction His Majesty's wishes inclined, not only were the:r unanimous in their opinion in favom· of the ·expeditionJ but each in turn made most loyal speeches, coming forward to fight to the best of his ability in order to show his . gratitude for past royal favours, and undertaking to meet the King of Linzin in single cornba,t. Tl~e reason brought forwarcl by the generals was that the King of Linzin had been a principal factor in the Kings of Yodaya lightly throwing off their allegiance to His Burman Majesty and often breaking out in open rebellion, because they had always relied on the assistance of their chief ally of Linzin; and thet·efore until the King of I.inzin had been depri vecl of his power and influence and reduced to vassalage there could be no lasting peace with Yodaya. King Kyawdin Nawrata adducecl his main reason that in raising Sawbwa Tha.ungkyi to the throne of Yodaya, there might be some of the nobility who secretly dislikecl their new sovereign, and Sawbwa Thaungkyi had as yet no time to create a sufficiently powerful nobility of his own to stand by him in case of need ; therefore if the King of Linzin chose t o invade Yodaya, the newly crowned King would fall an easy victim to the intrigue and treachet·y of the discontented section of the nobility; and moreover, he would be handicapp_ed in the defence of his capital being poorly provided with big guns, as it was the intention' of His Burman :iYiajesty to send away all the big artillery to Hanthawacldy. Hence the urgent necessity to render the King of Linzin powerless in order to dispel from his mind any such ambitious designs to conquet· lowel' Siam. Binuya Dala concurred with His Majesty's opinion and extolled the • foresight displayed. Having thus unanimously agreed to march to Linzin direct from Yodaya, ICing Kyawclin Nawrata sent back to Ranthwacldy his queen Sanda Dewi ( Canda Devi) and her female attendantsJ the sick and the disabled men, and also all the big guns seized in the capture of Yoclaya. The escort consisted of about 10,000 men under the commantl of N anda Kyawdin and Baya. Kyawclin, and the big war boats were used as transport probably as far as Kamphengphet. The new King of Yodaya then presented his young daughter­ Bra Thawun who was only sevente'en years of age, by way of show­ ing his gratitude and indebtedness to his suzerain ; and the pros- [ 73 J pect of obtaining this youthful anclmost likely a. lovely consort was very probably the motive in sending back the old and perhaps a. jealous c1ueen. This young queen togethet· with fifteen concubines accompanied His Burman Majesty b Linzin.

---:0:---

On Friday the 6th of waning Ta.zftungmon 1 Chula Sakkat·aj 931 (A. D. ] 56 D.) King Kyawclin :N awrata left Yodaya for Linzin, via Peikthalank. He himself travelled in a richly gilded royal barge, and' of the army, some by land a.ncl some by wa.ter. At Peikthalauk the army was divided into two columns, the :i\'l!tha Upayaza, the King of Prome, and the King of Ava., each with eleven bl'igades forming one column, were ordered to take the route via Lagun. Kalauk; while the King of Toungoo with eleven brigades, the govemor of Tharawaddy with five, and Biunya Gyandaw with fout· all in the van, and King Kyawclin Nawl'a,t<'L in the rea.t·, forming the other column, marched in the direction of Kyaukta,ung ( lit : stone-hill), and thence to Thaungyet, and thence again to Maing-San. It took about three months for the latter colunm to reach the Me Ka.ung 2 rivet· and encamped on the bank opposite the town of Maing-San. A council of w;tr was then held in which the question discussed W

l. November. 2. :Me Nam Khong. [ 74 J

King Kyawdin N awrata appro,·ecl of the sugge!!ltion made by Min Maha, and orders were issued t o every brigade to fell wood in a forest of "Letpan " 3 trees and build boats. The whole army was kept at the work clay and night with the result that in three weeks three hundred big war boats and two hundred royal barges were finished. Some of the war boats were painted with vermilion and some of the roya.l barges were gilded. The corps of royal bargemen then manned the royal barge3, and a portion of the army was ordered to take to the wat· boats, to each of which a commander and a lieutenant were appointed. The whole flotilla was placed under the command of Binnya Gyandaw. As soon as the armngements h (l.cl been completed, to form a force by water in order to equalise the advantage which the King of Linzin might have had before, King Kyawdin Nawrata ordered the flotilla to attack Linzin's W0 men were killed, and over 200 war boats and 2,000 men captured. King Kyawdin Nawrata then used th{;:l war boats to form a ~J ridge across the Me Kaung river and crossed over with the wh ole· ~orce he had. The King of Linzin, not daring to oppose the crossing or able to withstand a siege, took to flight with his.army,to find shelte1· in the woods; and His Burman Majesty entered Maing-San and occupied it without resistance. As was usual with the Burmese· when a town had been taken, amusements in the way of music and dancing were indulged in. The Maha Upayaza. and the'. Kings of Ava and Prome who had gone in the direction of Lagun Kalauk could proceeJ only bJ· slow· marches owing to the larg·e number of men and animats and the scarcity of provisions on the way. When a.ppro.1ehing Lagun Kalauk t hey came upon a fairly big stream, on the other side of which was the t own of Lagun Kalauk. On sounding the depth of the stream it was found that the surface of the watet· just t ouched the backs of

3. The B~n· m es e name for Bob ax M alabaricum . [ 75 J

the elephants. Therefore no bridge was constmcted and the whole column crossed o>er, but how, it is not stated, probably some by s wimming and some on the backs of the elephants. When they had crossed the river, Linzin 's forces ganisoning Lagun Kalauk consist­ ing of over 300 offi cers and 50,00J men, deserted the t own anl1 ran into the forest. 1 he :vi aha U payaza thus occupied the t own without a s tru g·~· l e. It was then about three months since t hey had parted from their Sovereigu at Peikthalauk, and during t hat inter vrtl they had n ot head any news of him; evidently the t wo routes chosen must have been a lon g wn.y ap::nt from each other, if not the two columns would ce rt ~t inly have kept in touch with each other. Neither did t hey get any in fo rmation of the wherabouts of the King of Liuzin. Therefore the lVIaha Up

city he success fully re1)elle1; sulnequeutly, whe,l the expedition against Li nzin started he was give n ba,ck his brigade anl1 permitted t o take par t in the Ctl.mpaig·u . They marched ~1- l ong the b::wks of t he lHe Kaung, probably because there were greater fc ~ c i li t i es for obtaining provisions and W

came to 3, big lake, when Binnya Thane Lon one of Chiengm:1i's c,1ief

110b!emvhere the King of Li.nzin was a.nd whether the route chosen brought the pursnet·s towat·ds or took them away fl'om him. At last while camping at a place called Kabaung, a foot soldier went away from the camp in search of food. He was captured by some men from . Linzin's army and taken into the pl'esence of thei1· Sovereign. On being questioned, he told his captors that his army had lost many men from disease and starvation and it wa,s in great difficulties. At this the King of Linzin was very glacl and said that it was not through fear that he did not meet his enemy at fit·st, but that he was sirnply waiting for a favourable opportunity to strike the blow when they had been reduced to straits through hunger and sic!mess. Therefore making up his miml to face his foe, he constructec1 n. wooden stockade with a moa.t surrounding it at a place about ten miles from Kabaung ancl occupied his stronghold with n. f.Jt·ce of 400 elepha.nts and 80,000 men. Subsequently, King Kyawdin Nawt·ata receivecl information that the King of Linzin was in a fortified camp in a forest not far from where he was; thel'efore he issued Ol'ders to his generals to get ready, as he would ma1·ch at once. But the men had by [ 77 ]

this time been reduced t o au acute stage of sta.rvation. They had been subsisting on edible fruits, leaves, roots, bulbs etc., in the forest; and even these becoming sca,rce, there were many who had had nothing substantial to eat for three m· four days, and hacl been obligecl to turn to whatever was ar-cessible, and feed on such coarse fare as reeds and water plants, to ob tain what relief possible from the pangs of hunger. Still His Maj esty's m·der must be obeyed, and they marched straining what little strength there was left in them, being probably buoyed up also with the hope that if once the object of their seal'ch was found and the result decided, there would be an end to their random wanclering. On arrival within a distance of about two miles from the place where the King of Linzin remained fortified, King Kyawdin Nawrata proposed t o his generals that he would fight the King of Linzin singly, but in this he was disuaded by them, saying that while they were yet alive it was not for His Burman Majesty to engage in single combat a petty monat·ch who was not an eqmLl of His Burman Maje ty in rank, wealth, or power. Everyone was eager to face t he King of Linzin in single co mbat. Then Binuya Dala went to the King of Prome and tolcl him that it would be unadvisable to attack at onee as the men had been unable t o obtain any food the last three or four days, and were scarcely able to handle their weapons ; some stragglers who, owitig to starvation, had not been able t o keep up with the march were still lagging wearily on. The King of Prome repliecl t hat what the Binnya had told him was only too true; nay, he • l1imself could not get his last meal as no rice was t o be obtainecl either for love or for money . Although fifty ticals ha.cl been offer ell fo l' a. "sale " 4 of rice yet no rice wa3 forthcoming. He stticl, " lf we cannot get our meals what more to say of the poot· private ". He sent one Turin Theikcli (Turing Siclclhi ) to accom­ pany Binnya Dala to King Kyawdin Nawrata to explain the condition of the army. His Burman Majesty seeing Binnya Dala. co me, requested his· trusty counsellor t o come closer to him, antl enquired of the cautiol;ls nobleman what he thought of the intendecl immediat e attack. Binnya Dala though far-seeing in

4. A Burmese measure of rice equal t o .g. of a gallon or aboufi one Kanan. [ 78 ] many respects must, on this occasion, ln ro erred in j udgmeut on account of the misery and suffering w:1ich prevailed throughout the rank and file of the whole army, ancl the unexpected and apparently bold stand made by the King of Linzin who, he thought, had been driven to bay and had therefore resolved t o fight wildly to the last. Guided by these considerations he advised his Sovereign, afte many prostrations, to pos tpone the attack till the next morning, as the ch y wrts f

Linzin would tah to flight in the night, anll ordet·s would again be issued for tlJis wild-goose chase, to the great misery, suffering, and disgust of tl1e men. The Burmese historian, probably to show t o what straits the Burmese army had bee n reduced then, mentions that King Kyawdin N a wmta s:tw '" Shan private, belonging to tha picked body­ gua.nlregiment, pull out tha.tch grass and devom i t. On His Burm::w 1Y1a.jesty enq uiring tLc reason of his action, the Sha.n private told his So>ereign tha.t he ha.d been obligeJ to ea.t gr••s.s beca.u3e he had not lutd a.ny mea.l for the ht:;;t three chy.:;

E xpecting t o 1e attac], ed early the next morning, the King of Linzin made preparations to give tlte Burmese tL ntting Teceptiou ; nncl if he had been guicl ecl by no other counsel than ]lis own h e would cert;tinly hMe foug-h t the Burmese wi th the courage of a man brouglJ t to h<•y; ancl whatever the result might have been, the battle would at lecoSt h:tve SJ,vecl him fl'om the evil repu ta. tion be hn.d enj oyed a.m ong the Burmese, of alwn.ys ta.king to his hee ls when brought to clo:;e qu:Hters, a nd h om the contimnl ch a r g~ of co·,v .tdice 'brought against him. But his chief nobl e Binnya. Tba.ne a.dvisecl l tim to give up the icl ea. of fighting the Btmues e, sa.ying· th,Lt theie e nem ies h,,a 5,300 elephants, 53,0: 0 horse, and 550,000 men, where­ a:; they had on ly 400 elepba.nts and SO,CO) men) ancl the dispropor­ tio!1 was such th:lt their defeat would be cerbin. The King of Linzin said that the strength of the Burmese mi ght have been so at the co mm encement of the invasion of Yochy

nobly met his death; then in the siege of Peiktha.lauk the combined forces of Yodaya and Linzin ha.d been unable to subdue the com­ paratively small force commanded by only three Binnya.s; and LLstly at Inthagaw, by tmsting to the false representations of the Siamese nobleman Oya Ram, their al'IIlY had suffered a signal defeat. N ovv ·only on the strength of the sta.tement made by a solitary captive which might after all tum out to be untme, to assume that the Burmese had been so reduced in numbers and so weakened by privations that they would not be able to fight as usual was absurd. Binnya. Thane further said tha.t Linzin territory W

It was only on the next moming that the Burmese King found out that the bird hacl again flown, no doubt to the g- reat disgust of his son the l\hh"' U p.1yaz:L. The King of Linzin must hltve left his stronghold in a hurry to take full adva,nta.ge of the whole night, beca,use a quantity of grain and provisions was left behind which. formed a welcome prize to the Burmese in the depleted state of their own stores.

King Kyawclin Nawmt

5. April. [ 81 ]

tumy. Binnya Pantn's son was permitted to succeed to the com­ mand of his fttther's brigade with the title of Binnya Set. Binnya, Law who, together with Binnya Paran, had been degra lecl ancl deprivecl of his comnHtncl, f<)l' want of zeal and energy in cl .fending the siege of Peiktha.lauk, was given IJfLck his former rank ncl title as well as his command. F ro m ~Lting-San His Bmman Majesty went to Peikthalauk which was reached in the month of ayon 6 ; a fter staying there five clays he left it on the 7th of waxin::o N a, yon and reached Hanthawadcly on Saturcl

I .

•

!5. June. 'l. July, l [ 82 J

SI l ARTHUR P. PHAYRE'S ACCOUNT 01' THE NAR ATIVE CONTAINED IN THE SIXTH PAPER..

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-aul'ettg Bu ·eng Naung sent back by the ne[Lrest route t o Pegu all Naul'lg sick and disa.blecl men, with the plundet· he had reseHed and ma t~che s Ilitto i..aos prisoners of importance ; but with untiring energy he determined 'Without himself }o follow up the King of Lengzeug. He proceeded success. with his 1ale and unwounded men to Pitsalauk, and from thence directed he march to the north-ea.st of the several divisions of his [Ll my. In a few days he follo\ve c1 , atul encamped on the r igh~ bank of the Mekong opposite lYiain gzan. Some of the cl ivis~ on s passed the ri1er higher up and moved L1own the .left bank. As Bnreng Naung was prepared to cross by a bridge of boats, tl1 e enemy evacuated the cit..r. The pla.ce was made a L1epot fo}· stores and for the sick, the King of Ta,ungu being plrtcecl it} command, and Bm·eng Naung himself· marched in pursuit o~ the enemy. The K in g of Laos was t oo wary to come t o an engag-ement, and the in>aclers "-ere soon wearied by long ma rches in a. mountainous country, ancl by mwt of fo od. They returned to Maingzan thoroughly exhrmstecl, [Lnd the whole army recrossing the 1\ iehong, marched back to Pitsalauk. Bureng dune A. D, Naung, ushing on t o his cn.pital, arrirecl there n. month la.tel". J570, Of the riginal anny which mo.rched against Siam, >ery few men sulTivecl to reach their 01rn country. •